Designing reserves for freshwater fish in New Zealand

Abstract

New Zealand’s small freshwater fish fauna comprises 27 species, of which 17 are diadromous. Most have suffered reduction in abundance or range since European colonisation, so are in need of conservation measures. Criteria for the design of reserves for riverine fish differ from those for land-based organisms, because of the naturally elongated shape of their habitats. Six important characters of a reserve for New Zealand freshwater fish are: natural habitat, adequate size, permanent water supply, absence of exotic species and of exploitation, and (for the large proportion of diadromous species) access to and from the sea. © 1984 Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand.