Tony Abbott's administration has been accused of being the most conservation-hostile in living memory.

Motorists and beach-goers are again being urged to keep an eye on a king tide that has caused issues in recent days.

They're the world's largest animal - and very elusive - so it's no wonder NIWA scientists are thrilled at the number of blue whales swimming in NZ waters right now.

King tides are due to wash up on Auckland's shores just after 10am today, and the New Zealand Transport Agency is warning people to take extra care on coastal roads.

A Mexican fisherman who says he drifted for months across the Pacific Ocean before washing up on a remote Marshall Islands atoll is on his way home.

King tides lure dozens out to play but expert warns people to take care in the current.

Eyes on the underwater world of New Zealand, photos by Richard Robinson. See more of his photos in this series at www.depth.co.nz.

A New Zealander who survived being shipwrecked in shark-infested Fijian waters has lost part of his arm in an accident on board a foreign fishing vessel.

Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd says it has boxed in the Japanese whaling fleet's factory ship, effectively suspending whaling in the Southern Ocean.

A key question in the trial of Easy Rider owner Gloria Davis is her knowledge of the safety issues surrounding the vessel.

The skipper of a boat that sank in Foveaux Strait resulting in the deaths of eight people made a catalogue of errors, the trial of his widow heard yesterday.

Washington and Tokyo have been drawn into an unexpected diplomatic spat over the annual slaughter of dolphins in Taiji.

Crab fishers leaving a beach strewn with chicken carcasses have outraged residents and conservationists at Omaha.

The widow of the Easy Rider skipper faces trial today over the vessel's deadly sinking in Foveaux Strait nearly two years ago.

A pod of orca whales has been spotted near the entrance to Akaroa Harbour on Banks Peninsula.

Govt defends decision to award $8m ferry contract to a Bangladesh firm

"I can't see this behaviour of having sharks associate food with boats coming to anything good." Shark-cage diving isn't appreciated by some Stewart Is boaties.

'I must now abandon this dream', says the 76-year-old former Dunedin man who was trying to sail around the world solo.

Footage of a fatal crash between a dinghy and a yacht in the Bay of Islands has been given to authorities to determine who was at fault.

Northland fisheries officers say they have seen little illegal fishing over the holiday period.

A fundraising concert for opponents of a planned Waiheke Island marina has been lauded as "Woodstock without the nakedness" by organiser John Hawkesby.

A diver who suffered a potentially fatal blow when struck in the chest by a stingray's barb is one of several people to have a close encounter so far this summer.

A blockade at the entrance to Hole in the Rock is being considered as part of a long-running row over money and mana.

"I saw everyone running from the water." Swimmers and boarders at Papamoa Beach head for sand as bronze whaler swims through the shallows.

A fisherman stabbed by a stingray while hauling in nets at sea managed to cut the barb off while it was still embedded in his leg.

Two Auckland holidaymakers suspected of illegally fishing inside a Northland marine reserve could face charges.