If you’ve ever headed out to the beautiful Tītahi Bay in Porirua, you’ve probably passed by Onepoto Park. This park isn’t just an awesome spot to kick around a ball and soak in the stunning views of Porirua Harbour; it also boasts a super cool stream that many of our fish friends call home!
We recently joined our friends from Kahotea Stream Restoration Group to explore the fish living in the Kahotea Stream. This group is dedicated to enhancing and restoring the stream and its diverse life. As dusk settled in, torches in hand, we ventured out to spotlight some fish. We were amazed by the abundance of life in the stream—hundreds of īnanga (whitebait) swimming around, along with shortfin and longfin tuna, giant kōkopu, banded kōkopu, and toitoi (bully)! The stream was teeming with life; it was hard to keep count! The Kahotea Stream is home to a rich diversity of native fish, and the local community has been working hard to continue improving their habitat.
The Kahotea Stream runs through Tītahi Bay, alongside Onepoto Park, and out into the Porirua Harbour. This stream winds through urban and residential areas before reaching the ocean, which has sadly degraded the quality of the stream and the fish habitat. However, the local community has shown a keen interest in restoring the Kahotea Stream. Over the past decade, local community members, schools, and whānau have come together at Onepoto Park to plant hundreds of native plants along the stream. The incredible mahi led by the Kahotea Stream Restoration Group has significantly enhanced the habitat of the planted sections, with some early restoration plantings now flourishing and providing excellent habitat for fish. The community continues to plant new sections each season and aims to plant 250 more plants on the upcoming planting days on the 7th and 14th of July. (P.S. Come join us in the plantings if you love fish—we might even help you spot some!)
Restoration planting is crucial in our urban stream environments, as streams are often left exposed and channelized due to urban and residential development. To help restore stream habitats, many elements are needed, but planting alongside the stream (riparian planting) is vital for water quality and erosion control. Riparian plants are key part of stream systems, slowing down surface and groundwater runoff, filtering out nutrients, pollutants, and sediment. They also create habitats for fish and other aquatic life and help keep the stream cool and shaded.
When spotlighting in the Kahotea Stream, the number of fish varied across different sections of the stream throughout Onepoto Park. In the section with excellent plant cover from early restoration plantings, there was an abundance and diversity of fish. However, further upstream, where there is less plant habitat, there were fewer fish. This highlights the importance of restoring streams with native riparian plants, and although a slow process as the plants and trees grow, it is all worth it when the fish return to a home worth living in!
Our Wai Connection team at Mountains to Sea Wellington supports the Kahotea Stream Restoration Group by helping them understand the impact of their restoration work. We have trained the team to monitor the water quality of the stream and will continue to help them with monitoring and restoration work.
Feel like being a part of this fantastic kaupapa? Come on down to Onepoto Park on the 7th and 14th of July (10am - 2pm) and help us plant the next section of the stream! Kai and drinks are provided, and all the gear needed will be available—just head down and lend a hand in getting these plants in the ground. Sign up here to let us know if you can make it!
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