• Members of Leigh Swimmers were swimming inside the marine reserve at Goat Island near Leigh in north Auckland when they discovered people fishing from a nearby boat.
• A swimmer who climbed on to the boat discovered an estimated 200 fish on board, many undersized, he said.
• It’s illegal to take marine life from marine reserves such as the Cape Rodney-Okakari Point Marine Reserve at Goat Island, and the Department of Conservation is investigating.

The Department of Conservation is investigating after a group of ocean swimmers say they came upon a boatload of people fishing in a popular North Auckland marine reserve on Sunday.

And when one of the members of Leigh Swimmers climbed aboard the boat behind Goat Island inside the Cape Rodney-Okakari Point Marine Reserve - the country’s oldest - they were shocked to discover an estimated 200 fish on board, most undersized, Leigh Swimmers pod leader Kaye Mueller said.

It’s illegal to take marine life from a marine reserve, with a maximum punishment of three months’ jail and a $10,000 fine, according to DoC.

The group of about 10 to 15 swimmers had reached the back of Goat Island when they spotted people fishing from a speedboat “tucked in” behind the island about 9.15am last Sunday, Mueller said.

“[It was like], ‘Hang on, they’ve got fishing lines in a marine reserve’ … you betcha they didn’t expect us to come around the corner.”

With initially no other boats around, three or four of the group swam over to the vessel, with one climbing aboard to confront the at least five occupants.

Leigh Swimmers members spotted people allegedly fishing inside the marine reserve at Goat Island near Leigh in north Auckland last Sunday. The Department of Conservation is investigating.

The man who climbed on to the boat said he estimated there were 200 fish on board and they were “generally very small”.

Those aboard “pleaded ignorance”, he said.

The man threw the fish overboard, along with a chilly bin another swimmer then took ashore, Mueller said.

Her group were “gobsmacked” at the alleged poachers’ actions, the first she’d seen in the decade Leigh Swimmers had been going to the area.

However, others had told of similar incidents, she said, after she posted details of the alleged poaching on Leigh Swimmers’ Facebook page.

“Our marine reserve is so precious, and it’s 50 years old this year … this is just brazen. It’s so greedy – a race for the last fish.”

Cape Rodney-Okakari Point (Goat Island) Marine Reserve near Leigh, north of Auckland, is New Zealand's oldest marine reserve. Photo / Jay Farnworth

Hundreds of thousands of visitors make their way to the 556-hectare marine reserve’s crystal clear waters each year, where they can see giant snapper and other prolific species left to flourish free from human predation.

Although the boat, which appeared to be unnamed, couldn’t be immediately identified by the swimmers, they had sent video footage to DoC, Mueller said.

DoC was now investigating, a spokesperson said yesterday afternoon.

Because of this, they couldn’t comment further on the alleged incident, but their general message for the public was to “be our eyes and ears on marine reserves”.

“People are our greatest resource when it comes to managing marine reserves. If people see illegal or suspicious behaviour in marine reserves, we strongly urge them to report it.”

A diver swims with snapper at the Goat Island Marine Reserve in this undated photo.

If possible, those reports should include vessel names, vehicle descriptions and registration plates, descriptions of offenders and their behaviour, and photos, videos or GPS co-ordinates relating to what they saw, the spokesperson said.

Illegal activity in a marine reserve could take many forms, including rod or net fishing, diving or snorkelling..

The best way to report illegal or suspicious behaviour in marine reserves was by phoning 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468).

Reports could also be made by emailing [email protected]or via DoC’s social media channels.

“Don’t put yourself at risk or intervene if you see illegal behaviour in a marine reserve, report it to us instead.”

There have been previous incidents of people being caught fishing at the marine reserve, including in 2021 when two “very sorry” anglers were caught line fishing from the beach.

The pair caught two snapper before being stopped, with one of the fish able to be returned to the water alive.

Cherie Howie is an Auckland-based reporter who joined the Herald in 2011. She has been a journalist for more than 20 years and specialises in general news and features.