TOHEROA BEDS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 80, 5 January 1945, Page 6

TOHEROA BEDS

ADVANTAGE OF REMOTENESS From the point of view of conservation, it is a good thing, according to Mr A. E. Hefford, Chjpf Inspector of Fisheries and Director of Fishery Research, that New Zealand’s toheroa beds are rather remote from the more densely-populated places. “This advantage to conservation, nullified by the coming of the motor car,” said Mr Hefford in the annual report of the Marine Department for 1943-44, “is again effective under conditions of wartime motor fuel restriction, although these conditions have limited departmental activities for investigation and protection rather more than they have hampered exploitational operations. However, the marine biologist has been able to make periodical though brief visits to the principal toheroa beaches, and it is mainly from his reports that our information about existing conditions is derived. “On the Ninety-mile Beach the toheroa beds have not yet returned to the well-stocked condition in which they were when decimated by the great mortality that occurred in 1938. Some improvement, however, has been shown over successive years, and at present there are moderately good beds developing over about 20 miles of this beach which were almost barren of sizeable toheroas a year or two ago; but their average size is low—very close to the minimum that is suitable for commercial supplies. A degree of restraint in exploitation is more necessary for these beds than for those on the beaches further south. The recent appearance of dense and extensive beds of tuatua (the common pipi) is likely to have an advanse effect on the"wellbeing and abundance of toheroa. “On the. North Kaipara Beach the beds appear to be increasing in the southern part of the area and were well stocked with fat toheroas of good average size, together with a lory proportion of younger stages, when inspected recently. The beds in the northern part of the area, which appear to be subject to more variation from year to year, are not so densely populated but contain molluscs of large size in more than usual abundance. Depletion is evident on those parts of the beaches in the vicinity of roads and tracks. “The beds on the Muriwai Beach are well stocked, apparently not so numerous as a year or two ago, but some of them are of considerable area. The larger sizes appear to predominate, and thus it would appear to be safe, and even expedient, to allow a greater degree of exploitation here than, for instance, on the Ninety-mile Beach.”