Pāua harvest estimates by land-based amateur fisher—Kaikōura Marine Area in 2023

This survey provided detailed information on the amateur harvest of blackfoot pāua (Haliotis iris) in the Kaikōura Marine Area. Estimates of total recreational fishing effort and data on the size and catch rate of pāua were collected using roving counts of fishers and interviews at land-based access points along 60 km of coastal highway.

Following a series of significant earthquakes in 2016, the commercial and recreational fisheries from Marfells Beach to the Conway River were closed to pāua harvest to allow for protection of the remaining pāua populations and associated habitats. The fishery reopened in December 2021 for a three month open season and the first amateur pāua harvest survey was initiated to monitor how the fishery responds to fishing pressure.

This report documents the second survey conducted to estimate the amateur harvest of pāua in the Kaikōura Marine Area and the first survey to provide weekly updates of harvest estimates. The emphasis of the survey was on estimating the amateur harvest of pāua during an open season in autumn from 15 April 2023 to 15 June 2023. The primary sampling unit in this survey was a random selection of days stratified by holiday/weekend days and weekdays. The opening weekend was defined as a separate temporal stratum, with Saturday and Sunday allocated as survey days to capture the anticipated surge in fishing effort and to refine survey implementation. A single access point survey in Oaro was also included in the on-site interviews for the first time. Data for harvest estimates for rock lobster (Jasus edwardsii), yellowfoot pāua (Haliotis australis), and kina (Evechinus chloroticus) were also collected and analysed.

Harvest methods were defined as hand gathering, where people wade or lie in the water to look for or feel under rocks for pāua which mainly occurs around low tide and snorkelling, swimming with a mask to gather pāua and target a range of species at high and low tide. Separate high and low tide survey sessions were conducted on survey days. Gathering pāua using SCUBA or other underwater breathing apparatus is not permitted.

There were four Māori customary fishing areas closed to pāua fishing in the Kaikōura Marine Area during the open season including the taiāpure around the Kaikōura Peninsula. The Hikurangi Marine Reserve covers two kilometres of rocky coast and is permanently closed to removal of all marine species.

The survey in areas open to pāua fishing in the Kaikōura Marine Area estimated a total of 6888 people were in the water and 26 170 pāua were kept. Based on length and weight data collected, the amateur harvest estimate of pāua at Oaro for the survey period was 32.6 kg (CV 0.49) and the combined survey area was 11.66 tonnes (CV 0.25).