Auckland / Waikato News November 11

The season so far
Despite the incremental weather, windy and wet, the fishing has been excellent. Angler numbers have been soaring on the Whakapapa and Whanganui, no doubt taking advantage of a good hatch of mayflies that usually starts mid-afternoon and continues on into the evening.

Elsewhere fishing pressure has been low. Many rivers, including the Waipa, have been running high but clear providing good conditions for spin fishing. The west coast rivers have generally fished very well and are holding high numbers of fish. Weather-wise, the fishing can only improve – it’s still early in the season.

150 years of fish and game bird management
The inaugural meeting of the Acclimatisation Society of Auckland occurred 150 years ago in November 1961.

This was the first acclimatisation society in New Zealand. Although acclimatisation societies were disestablished in 1990 with the formation of Fish & Game councils, in the Auckland/Waikato Region this was essentially a renaming exercise rather than a radical transformation.

The fundamental cornerstone of acclimatisation societies remained – anglers and hunters directly managing the sports fish and game bird resource.

Health warning lifted on Hamilton Lake
The health warning on Hamilton Lake (Lake Rotoroa) has been lifted by the Medical Officer of Health, Dr Dell Hood, following two low counts for blue-green algae.

In doing so Dr Hood noted that with the warmer weather and longer days it is likely that a blue-green bloom could recur. Blue-green algae and their toxins will not be evenly spread through the lake but may be concentrated in some areas by wind and water movements, and thus anglers should stay clear of any visible scum or discoloration of the water.

Fish & Game has had a long involvement with the management of Hamilton Lake. Prior to the early 1980s the lake was closed to recreational anglers and it was only after an extensive research program to establish the viability of the fishery that anglers were allowed to fish.  There have been numerous other studies on this fishery, focusing on the rudd and perch populations. And this summer we will be starting a tagging program on the tench population.

Esplanade Strips
Esplanade strips are now the most common method of imposing public access along rivers by district councils. Ownership remains with the landowner but the public gains access to a strip of land alongside the river.
The Walking Access Commission considers esplanade strips to be “tracks” rather than reserves. A minor point perhaps but if you are using the Commission’s access map (www.wams.org.nz) the difference is important. Reserves are automatically shown on the access map, but esplanade strips are only shown if you tick the box labeled “tracks and access points”.
An example is the esplanade strip on the Moakurarua Stream upstream of Honokiwi Road where several years ago a foreign pension trust purchased the surrounding land for forestry conversion.
As a condition of the land purchase, the foreign owners had to provide for public access, and thus an esplanade strip was imposed.

Newsletter
You should have received our summer Sports Fish newsletter in the mail earlier this month. It is also available as a download on our website