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New Zealand Marine Reserves

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How many reserves are there in New Zealand, and what are they for?

New Zealand marine reserves are areas of ocean that are closed to fishing, and various other activities, in order to preserve fish stocks and ecosystems that are especially valuable, representative or unique, in the national interest. At heart, a marine reserve is a fisheries management tool - but only because economies tend to come before conservation.

The resulting reserves are valuable resources for education and research - I remember going on school trips to reserves, in primary and secondary school, and many field trips while at University (studying to be a marine biologist). Most of the studies we did would not have worked well anywhere else, as there just aren't enough animals to study! Reserves - good reserves - are also amazing places to visit for entertainment, from safe swimming and snorkelling, to scuba diving. Goat Island (the oldest and best known reserves) is a hugely popular tourist spot (so popular that there's often no parking in summer), which has kept the nearby towns of Leigh and Warkworth in business.

While the option of closing areas off to fishing is used worldwide, New Zealand has been the most successful. Reserves are managed by the Department of Conservation, but there is a great deal of misconception around how and why, and what affect reserves will have on the local communities.

This page is a quick look at the current state of marine reserves in New Zealand- specifically, the number, area, establishment and distribution of marine reserves, as well as touching on the proven benefits and issues.. I owe a great debt to Tony and Jenny Enderby - Professional Divers and Underwater Photographers who wrote the book A Guide to New Zealand's Marine Reserves - currently the only guidebook to New Zealand's reserves (and very good!)

Have You Ever Been To A Reserve?

goat islan new zealand marine reserve beach Silhouette against the Sea by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantART
A view from the beach of Goat Island marine reserve

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A Map of the Reserves in NZ

There are currently thirty one full marine reserves, plus outlying islands, in New Zealand.

Marine Reserves around New Zealand in 2011

Five of these marine reserves lie inside the Hauraki Gulf, a large area of coastal water between the Northland and Coromandel peninsulas (the two bits at the top of the North Island).

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The Rules of the Marine Reserve

Touch nothing. Harm nothing. Take nothing.

Not even shells - they're part of the habitat!

What Is A Marine Reserve, Exactly?

Types of Marine Protected Areas in New Zealand

Dark Water dolphins black white new zealand by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantART A marine reserve has a specific definition in New Zealand that is actually unique. Unlike most of the world, New Zealand reserves allow full public access, and no fishing, whether recreational or personal. Overseas Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) usually allow recreational fishing or ban all visitors without special permits. This often has the same unfortunate result as the example of the Poor Knights - these areas become popular game fishing spots and fish stocks do not recover.

There are also some other types of MPAs in New Zealand. Marine Parks are similar to what is usually found overseas - new zealand dolphins pair blue water Sideways by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantART a designated area of protection, but with very variable and individual limits on access and fishing. They usually offer much less protection than a full reserve.

There are also three Maori-specific forms of marine protection. Rahui are temporary closures, either for cultural reasons or fishing pressure. More permanent forms are the less restrictive Mataitai reserves, and Taiapure, which are controlled by local iwi ('tribes').

Outside of the territorial sea, there are eighteen seamounts closed to trawlers, due to the amount of damage they cause and some Marine Mammal Sanctuaries around New Zealand.
new zealand Crab in the dark by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantART
There are also three Maori-specific forms of marine protection. Rahui are temporary closures, either for cultural reasons or fishing pressure. More permanent forms are the less restrictive

How Big Are The Reserves?

How much of New Zealand waters are protected?

An orange sponge, north island beach of New ZealandThere are only two truly large reserves in New Zealand waters, and these are highly inaccessible, distant island groups - the Auckland Islands and the Kermadecs. These two reserves are responsible for 99% of New Zealand's protected waters, at 484,000 and 745,000 hectares, respectively.

In total, the ten Fiordland reserves protect 10,000 hectares of habitat.

The vast majority of New Zealand reserves are about 500 hectares across - that's five square kilometres. Overall, 7% of New Zealand coastal waters are protected, however, the majority of this area is in the two island groups. Only 0.3% of the actual New Zealand coastline has any form of protection, which is far short of the recommended 10%. As a comparison, 30% of land is in some kind of National Park.

How Are Marine Reserves Created?

Does the Department of Conservation have an evil agenda?

Queen Triggerfish postcard postcard
Queen Triggerfish postcard by Thorninger
Browse more Nature Postcards

With the exception of Fiordland, which has a very effective local organisation, known as the Guardians of Fiordland, marine reserves in New Zealand are proposed on an ad hoc basis. This is mainly because the legislation around reserves prevents the DoC actually selecting sites. New reserves must be proposed and agreed to by the local community.

The closest DoC has come to selecting reserves is by polling areas on which location they would prefer a reserve to be created. Local opposition would have stopped any of these reserves in their tracks and has prevented others (both recent proposals - Akaroa (2010) and Aotea/Great Barrier Island (2008) were declined in favour of local recreational fishing groups, despite the majority of submissions being in favour).

new zealand Dotterel by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantART

Reserves are a good place to see many species of fish and seabirds that you will have trouble finding elsewhere.

The Distribution of Marine Reserves

Where are they located around New Zealand?

Sunrise Cat by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantARTMarine reserve distribution is highly unsatisfactory from a conservation point of view.

The majority are clustered along the East coast of Northland (from Pollen Island and Long Bay in the Auckland region, northwards), around the Cook Strait, and around the Fiordland fjords.

There is a single reserve on the East coast of the South Island - the smallest in New Zealand, at 216 ha! There are also a handful scattered along the east coast of the North Island.

Black oystercatchers by ~Flynn-the-cat on deviantART
Black Oystercatchers

he entire upper west coast of the South Island (basically, everything but the Fiordlands), the west coast of the North Island, and the entire east coast of the south Island are unprotected. That's a LOT of coastline.

Learn More At These Links!

The Best Resources To Learn About NZ Marine Reserves

Underwater Wonders of New ZealandIn summary, there are thirty reserves spread inconsistently around New Zealand, which only protect a very small percentage of New Zealand waters. 99% of this protection is around two outlying island groups. They are established or declined based on the level of local community support, and maintained by the Department of Conservation.

Reserves have been proven to have a variety of benefits, such as conservation, education, research and recreation - Goat Island is a hugely popular holiday and school trip destination, for example. There are also cases of 'spill over', with local reserve stocks increasing local fishing catches.

No-take reserves are the only effective way to protect fish species, marine biodiversity and fisheries stock levels

Amazon.com: A Guide to New Zealand's Marine Reserves (9781869661144): Tony Enderby: Books
Amazon.com: A Guide to New Zealand's Marine Reserves (9781869661144): Tony Enderby: Books
Marine reserves A-Z: Marine protected areas
Learn about what makes each of our marine reserves special and what can be done to protect these 'underwater national parks'.
Marine Reserves Home Page
Created by Bill Ballantine. This website is about 'no-take' marine reserves
- areas of the sea in which there is no fishing at all; as little other
human disturbance as can be reasonably arranged, but where people are encouraged
to learn about the more natural marine life and processes that thi
Jenny & Tony Enderby - photojournalists
Jenny and Tony Enderby - photojournalists

More Articles About Reserves

Learn more about the benefits and history of New Zealand's marine reserves

Colours of the Imagination - Rainbow World postcard
Colours of the Imagination - Rainbow World by Flynn_the_Cat
Get your Postcards online at zazzle

"I take visitors out to the Poor Knights today, and they're so excited by the fish life they're just about walking on water ... And all I can think is that they're seeing a crumb, a skerrick of what it once was."
Wade Doak Poor Knights - National Geographic


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Blue Haven - National Geographic Magazine

New Zealand marine reserves are a model for the wo more...0 points

Recent News On New Zealand Marine reserves

A quick search for recent changes.

Minister's Akaroa Marine Reserve decision quashed
"The Government needs to get serious about protecting our marine environment and threatened species like Hectors and Maui's dolphins by increasing the miniscule amount of New Zealand waters that are protected," said Mr Hughes.
Minister's Akaroa Marine Reserve decision quashed
"Currently only 0.3% of New Zealand waters are in marine reserves compared to land where the DoC estate covers around one third of New Zealand." "The Government has allowed The Marine Reserves Bill to languish in select committee for almost 10 years.
Conservation Minister must rethink marine reserve proposal
Wellington, New Zealand ? After over 17 years of advocating for an Akaroa Harbour marine reserve, a community conservation group has had a major victory after the High Court ordered the Conservation Minister to reconsider their proposal.
US, New Zealand mending frayed military ties
By NICK PERRY AP WELLINGTON, New Zealand -- US servicemen, veterans and a Marine band are visiting their New Zealand counterparts over the coming weeks as part of an effort by the two countries to forge closer military ties, a quarter-century after a ...
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Marine Biology, Snorkelling and Underwater Photography

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Fiordland Underwater, New Zealand's Hidden Wilderness

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  • TenerifeLowcostholidays Jun 23, 2011 @ 9:05 am | delete
    Wow some really interesting stuff on this lens - I am learning so much on Squidoo!
  • GonnaFly Mar 14, 2011 @ 4:07 am | delete
    That's an amazing comparison: 30% of the land is protected (that's a huge amount!) but only .3% of the coastline. Just wanted to let you know that I aced the quiz ... at least I didn't get any wrong :-)
  • sidther Mar 11, 2011 @ 4:11 pm | delete
    Beautiful lens!
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Flynn_the_Cat

I'm a Marine Biology post-graduate student, digital artist, traditional artist and photographer, obsessive reader, librarian and internet addict.

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I've got a degree in marine biology 

So I've been learning about marine reserves for years!

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The BEST Guide to NZ's reserves 

Actually, the only guide!

A Guide to New Zealand's Marine Reserves

A Guide to New Zealand's Marine Reserves

by: Tony Enderby

Amazon Price: $35.84 (as of 06/03/2012)Buy Now

My lecturers actually got the authors of this book to come meet us on a postgraduate fieldtrip last year - they're a married couple of divers and underwater photographers who have visited and photographed every reserve in New Zealand. There's a foreword by Bill Ballantine, who is pretty much THE face of NZ marine reserves - he's a scientist who helped get Goat Island established and has been studying thye results for over 25 years.

This book is awesome for anyone wanting to visit, whether for a dive trip or just a walk around the coastline. It's small, fairly brief, but with enough information about each reserve to be very useful and enough in the way of original photography to be fun to look through.

It's also the only book that will actually tell you about all the reserves, Most 'sight seeing' books will only mention a couple of the more famous ones, such as the Poor Knights, Goat Island and the Fiordlands.

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