"This little girl is wearing what look like yellow pyjamas with a white strip through them," police said in an earlier statement.
"We don't know her name but we want to get her back with her family as soon as possible. If this little girl is yours please ring the Gisborne police on 869 0805."
A police spokeswoman earlier told the Herald the little girl was found in the gardens on Sunday evening by two police officers.
She was unsure if the two officers were responding to a job in the area at the time.
Gisborne Botanical Gardens span 5.1ha and back on to the Taruheru River, one of a trio of rivers that flow through the city.
The river winds through Gisborne, where it meets the Waimata River, with the combined river flowing to the northern end of Poverty Bay as the Turanganui River.
"How terrifying for the family," said one concerned resident on social media.
Others expressed dismay and hoped the toddler was okay.
Many commenters asked police to provide a photo of the girl to help track down her family.
However police made a second post in response.
"Hi everyone, thanks for your kind thoughts. We are monitoring the post and for legal reasons we cannot provide a photo."
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