Large rivers present major challenges for biomonitoring and the development of biocriteria because of difficulties obtaining samples representative of the range of habitats present and a paucity of information on taxa responses to environmental conditions. We sampled littoral and deepwater benthic habitats to investigate macroinvertebrate community composition associated with organic, sediment and heated water discharges at 22...

Marine ecosystems are structured by physical and biological influences on: production and transport of organic matter; population dynamics; and food web architecture. Here, we review how scientific insights in the Fiordland marine area have supported ecosystem management. Fiordland is a case study for four ecological paradigms: 1. physical forcing of productivity; 2. subsidies of organic matter; 3. reproductive source‐sink dyn...

Groundwater plays an important role in New Zealand water supplies and hence monitoring activities are conducted regularly. Most monitoring programmes aim to evaluate groundwater chemistry and almost completely overlook the microbial component in this ecosystem. In our present study, the bacterial community structure of groundwater in the Wairarapa Valley was examined using the terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism...

Rehabilitation of vertical hydrological exchange in small pasture streams is expected to improve hyporheic habitat, invertebrate life and ecosystem functioning, and may be achieved by adding large woody debris (LWD). This study investigated whether hyporheic improvement within 10 to 50 cm below streambed surface is evident around existing wood structures in a small New Zealand pasture stream in the Whatawhata area near Hamilto...

A ridge‐like structure on the Campbell Plateau southeast of New Zealand, previously identified by Squires as a coral coppice, has been relocated (50° 41.46′S, 167° 41.45′E) and its extent and morphology mapped using multibeam and backscatter data obtained during an opportunistic survey. There are at least three other similar features at this location on a seafloor bank, although only two were fully mapped. ‘Squires’ Coral Copp...

Epiphytic dinoflagellates were isolated from samples collected from macroalgae and corals during an expedition to the Kermadec Islands group, led by the Auckland Museum in November 2013. Isolates included species of Gambierdiscus and Ostreopsis , genera included in the ciguatera fish poisoning complex. Cells of a compressed (apical to antapical) form of Gambierdiscus were isolated into growth media, but species identification...

After a physical disturbance, such as a predatory stimulus, several marine organisms withdraw into a refuge to ensure survival. Consequently, they cannot engage in other essential activities. Re‐emergence reflects a trade‐off between avoidance of disturbance and lost feeding opportunities. The New Zealand sea anemone ( Anthopleura aureoradiata ) avoids predators by withdrawing its tentacles into its upper body. In a field expe...