Oceans

This identification guide covers the common crustose coralline algae found in central New Zealand.

NIWA oceanographer Dr Cliff Law explains the impacts of ocean acidification on organisms that use carbonates to build their shells, and on bacteria.

In this blog series, we feature a new critter from our expansive invertebrate collection including pictures of specimens in their unique habitat. The blogs also feature news, links and fun facts that showcase New Zealand’s fascinating marine fauna.

Rig shark is an important inshore commercial fish species in New Zealand, and we need to understand more about their habitats, movements, nursery grounds and vulnerability to human impacts to ensure they are managed sustainably and their productivity is enhanced.

Shellfish gathering and farming take place in marine and freshwater environments.

Hydrocarbons, although requiring increasingly responsible use, are still an essential part of our modern economy. NIWA has provided survey and consultancy services related to the exploration of offshore mineral resources for thirty years.

NIWA scientists have made the rare discovery of a days-old ghost shark during a recent survey off the east coast of the South Island.

An interactive guide to the intertidal sponges of New Zealand.

NIWA puts a lot of things in the ocean—instruments tied to moorings, floats that dive up and down measuring what’s going on in the water, and video cameras that monitor fish.

Pollen from New Zealand pine forests has been shown to travel more than 1500km through wind and ocean currents, and sink thousands of metres into the ocean to reach some of the world’s deepest ecosystems.