Fish & Game Hails Kai Iwi Lakes Trout Turnaround

Fish & Game Hails Kai Iwi Lakes Trout Turnaround

Fish and Game Northland says the Kai Iwi lakes have turned a corner for trout fishing – with the latest fish weighed in the biggest recorded since the early nineties.

Northland Manager Rudi Hoetjes says the recent Kai Iwi Lakes Fishing Competition produced some fine fish; the winning trout weighed in at a solid 2.6 kgs showing clearly how the fishery has improved.

We believe one of the main reasons for the exciting turnaround – fish increasing in size and weight – is the complete removal of the pine tree plantations surrounding the lakes, Rudi says.

“The roots from the pines have drawn down a lot of groundwater over the years, and limited natural runoff into the lakes. This has compromised the lake levels during low rainfall years in particular.”

“With the pine trees gone and native species doing better the lakes are healthier. There is now more food present in the form of native species like inanga and koura, and the vegetation along the shoreline is providing insects for the trout to feed on.”

The native Dwarf inanga are thriving, a species which trout feed on in the same way as smelt in Lake Taupo and the Rotorua lakes, Rudi says.

“Anglers with fish finders on board their boats are commenting on seeing enormous shoals of small fish swirling like large balls in the water column. It’s likely they’ve increased in number due to higher lake levels in the reeds where they breed.”

At the same time, koura are being seen at night in their thousands, says Rudi.

Fish and Game had traditionally stocked the fishery with 3000 trout fingerlings but in 2001 this was reduced to 2000 fingerlings due to a decline in the overall trout average weight and condition factor.

The reduced stocking saw average fish weights start to improve in 2003 But since the removal of the pine trees, there has been a marked increase of 200 grams per fish in the average weight of catches in the annual fishing contest.

“We are now able to consider increasing annual liberations into the Kai Iwi Lakes, to provide greater angler opportunity and harvest.”

We must applaud the council’s decision to remove the pine trees as the right one, Rudi says, with natives to be planted in their place. “The end result will be a far better place for the public to camp and picnic, while the trout fishery will be further enhanced.”

“Anglers will just have show some patience like the rest of the community and wait for the native trees to take hold. But what is happening at the lakes is exciting and the Kai Iwi Lakes trout fishery is proving to be a winner,” Rudi says.

Background Information:

Trout liberations for the region are an essential tool in maintaining and providing a viable trout fishery in Northland. In May of 2011 the staff from Fish and Game Northland released trout into the following waters.

Wilsons Dam: 600 Brown trout
Whau Valley Dam: 250 Rainbow trout
Lake Manuwai: 600 Rainbow trout
Lake Taharoa (Kai Iwi Lakes): 2000 Rainbow trout
Lake Waikere ( Kai Iwi Lakes): 350 Rainbow trout
Waitangi River Puketona Junction: 250 Rainbow trout

ENDS