Hawke's Bay locals get knee-deep in water for whitebait

Gaye Nicholas proves there is no better combination than Kiwis, whitebaiting and red bands. Photo/Duncan Brown

There is something quintessentially Kiwi about standing knee deep in water, watching the waves roll in, knowing each one brings New Zealand's most sought after commodity with it - whitebait.

Whitebaiting season is now upon us, and if you drive past any river you are likely to see it dotted with people eagerly awaiting their dinner to swim upstream.

Whitebaiter Damien Pratley said the first day of the season had given him and his friends enough for a good feed of the fish.

"It's looking pretty good, general word is everyone is doing pretty well."

He said they did not sell any of their catch, instead giving any extra to friends and family.

"We all have jobs, we all earn our money the normal way, and there's always somebody out there who would like to have a feed of free whitebait, that can't afford it.

"If you get enough to give some away, give some away to someone who will appreciate it."

The commercial sale of whitebait is becoming evermore controversial in New Zealand, with freshwater ecologist Mike Joy calling for a ban on selling whitebait.

Four of the five species caught during whitebaiting season are on the threatened species list, and Joy says that goes against the CITES Treaty, which bans the trade of endangered species, and which New Zealand is a signatory to.

"We go around telling the rest of the world off for catching whales and things that are threatened but we do the same thing right here.

"I've seen New Zealand whitebait for sale in Australia, Melbourne and other places.

"We should just give the whitebait the same protection that we give to trout, so there can be controls and you can't sell them."

Whitebait does not come cheap. At Hawke's Bay Seafood's it sells for $125 per kg.

General manager Marcus D'Esposito was unable to comment on the controversy surrounding commercial selling of whitebait, however said that every year saw different numbers of whitebait being caught.

"Every year there's one area that's fantastic," he said.

He hoped this year would be a good one for Hawke's Bay.

Minister of Conservation Eugenie Sage said she was expecting to receive advice from DoC later this year about their recommendations to improve the health of the whitebait fishery in New Zealand.

"DoC will work with iwi, whitebaiters, scientists, managers and other stakeholders and will make recommendations to me on options to improve the health of the whitebait fishery," Sage said.

There are five species of whitebait in New Zealand The shortjaw kōkopu is 'threatened', and the giant kōkopu, kōaro and inanga are 'at risk-declining'.

The banded kōkopu is the only species to not appear on the threatened species list.

DoC freshwater scientist Jane Goodman says the main cause for the decline in numbers is habitat degradation, and would encourage people who value whitebaiting to support habitat restoring initiatives.

"We encourage people to get in behind local initiatives to restore spawning and adult whitebait habitat and to reduce their impact on our freshwater environment."

The season runs from August 15 to November 30 in most places in New Zealand.