August 09, 2016
Whitebait ready to run
The whitebait season opens next week, and the Department of Conservation is warning it will take a tough line enforcing the rules.
Kapiti Wellington District biodiversity ranger Dave Moss says people who fish at night, use more than one net or have outsized or unmanned nets are stealing the whitebait from future generations.
Whitebaiting is permitted between 5am and 8pm from August 14 or between 6 am and 9pm when daylight saving starts on September 28.
The season is shorter on the West Coast of Te Waipounamu, starting on September 1 and running until November 14.
Whitebait are juveniles of five species of native fish: giant kokopu, banded kokopu, shortjaw kokopu, inanga, and koaro.
These include some of the most endangered native species.
Mr Moss says iwi, councils, community groups and DOC have all been working to identify spawning sites and protect habitat, so the fish that do get there can breed successfully.
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