A group of swimmers say they disrupted suspected illegal fishing inside the protected Goat Island Marine Reserve north of Auckland, prompting the Department of Conservation to call for the public’s help.
The group from Leigh Swimming were in the water at the Reserve last Sunday.
“We came around the corner and at the back of Goat Island saw fishermen with lines in the water fishing in our precious marine reserve,” said swimmer Kaye Mueller.
A smaller group of swimmers swam up to the boat and called out those on board.
“I think they were quite surprised to see swimmers around the back of the island. They were almost in shock, I think,” a swimmer who did not wish to be identified told 1News.
“‘No, no, you can’t fish. You’ve got to put that fish back. This is a marine reserve’.”
She said the fishers started pulling up their lines and prepared to leave. However, one of the swimmers didn’t want them to leave with their catch. They estimated there were up to a couple of hundred fish on board, many of them undersized.
“One of our group did get on board and was very angry that these people were fishing,” she said.
“He got their chilly bin off them and tipped the fish overboard.”
Footage filmed by Mueller shows some of the swimmers leaving the boat and heading back to shore with the chilly bin in tow.
She was doubtful the fishers were simply looking to put food on the table.
“Not 200 undersized fish,” she said. “Sure, get one or two or whatever to feed the family, but not just wholesale harvesting like that.”
Mueller contacted the Department of Conservation (DOC) following the incident.
‘Pretty shocking’
Marine scientist Nick Shears, who works at Goat Island for the University of Auckland, called the standoff “a pretty shocking incident – the scale of it, the number of fish”.
But he said cases like this are not unheard of.
“We do have poaching occurring within the marine reserve periodically. DOC do their best with the resources they have to patrol the reserves.”
He said Goat Island Marine Reserve – the oldest in the country – plays a vital role in science and conservation.
“It’s a fully no-take marine reserve. No one is allowed to take anything. And it’s one of the few areas on our coast which is like that,” he said.
“So it means the fish here are able to thrive. They’re not continually being chased and harassed by fishermen. So it allows the ecosystems to naturally recover.”
In a statement, DOC said it was investigating the incident and could not provide details.
DOC issued a call for the public to be its “eyes and ears”.
“People are our greatest resource when it comes to managing marine reserves,” a spokesperson said.
Anyone who sees illegal or suspicious activity has been urged to report it with supporting evidence – such as vessel names, registration plates, and descriptions of the boat and people involved – to DOC.
DOC also called on people not to put themselves at risk by intervening when they see illegal fishing.
But the group from Leigh Swimming were undeterred and said if a similar incident happened again, they would try to record better evidence.
Mueller called the Goat Island area the group’s “blue backyard”.
“We just love it, so we want to preserve it and make sure that people respect that.”