title: The use of boat electrofishing for koi carp (Cyprinus carpio) control in the Kauri Point catchment.

authors: Hicks, Brendan J.

subjects: New Zealand

abstract: The koi carp is an ornamental strain of the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) which is believed to be one of the most ecologically detrimental of all freshwater invasive fish species. They are widespread in the Auckland and Waikato region and appear to be spreading both north and south of these areas. The presence of koi carp in 3 ornamental ponds at Kauri Point, Katikati which is located in the western Bay of Plenty region was confirmed in late 2006. Because koi carp is designated an unwanted organism under the Biosecurity Act it was decided by the Department of Conservation (DOC) that an attempt to eradicate them from this locality would occur. One possible option for eradication of koi carp in this catchment was the use of and electric fishing boat from the University of Waikato. This boat operates by putting a pulsed DC current into the water column where it attracts and then incapacitates fish, allowing operators to remove them from the water with hand nets.
The Centre for Biodiversity and Ecology Research (CBER) at the University of Waikato was contracted to attempt to eradicate koi carp from the three ponds at Kauri Point by boat-electrofishing. The objectives were (1) to survey the fish abundance, (2) to remove as mand koi as possible in an attempt for eradication and (3) to estimate the proportion of koi carp removed from the system by boat-electrofishing. On 21 and 22 April 2008, a total of 327 fish comprising of 307 koi carp (137.5 kg of biomass), 1 goldfish(Carassius auratus) and 19 koi-goldfish hybrids were captured and removed from the 3 ponds located within the Kauri Point catchment by a combination of electric fishing (307 fish) and gill netting (20 fish). The majority of these fish (299 koi, 1 goldfish, 19 koi-goldfish hybrids) were removed from the largest pond (pond A). Boat-electrofishing caught a wide size range of koi (70 mm to 510 mm) and at least four distinct size classes of koi were apparent. The high proportion of juvenile (<200 mm) caught along with reasonable numbers of mature males and females in pond A strongly suggests that breeding is occurring within the Kauri Point aquatic ecosystem. Results from analysing scales of a small sub sample of koi (n=34) also shows that there was a wide range of ages of pond A (ages 1 to 8 years old). Pond A had a relatively high density of 4.6 koi carp 100 m⁻² compared to pond B and C which had low densities of 0.5 and 0.2 koi carp 100 m⁻² respectively. No juvenile carp were observed to be present in ponds B and C.
Population and total biomass estimates for koi carp in pond A prior to removal of fish were calculated to be 358±66 koi carp and 145.14 ±44.27 kg (mean ±95% C. I) respectively. 299 koi carp or 122.30 kg of biomass (71-84% of the estimated population) were removed from pond A over two days of electric fishing, leaving a possible 125 koi carp or 67.11 kg of biomass remaining in the pond. Boat-electrofishing proved to be a successful too for removing a large proportion of the estimated biomass of koi carp in the Kauri Point ponds. Eradication of koi carp by boat-electrofishing from this system was not possible due to poor water visibility (difficult to spot narcotised carp), limited time allocated and successful koi carp breeding occurring in the ponds. Viable options of koi carp eradication in the Kauri Point catchment would involve the partial draining and poisoning of the three ponds and the associated tributaries where koi carp are found.

text: The use of boat electrofishing for koi carp (Cyprinus carpio) control in the Kauri Point catchment. The koi carp is an ornamental strain of the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) which is believed to be one of the most ecologically detrimental of all freshwater invasive fish species. They are widespread in the Auckland and Waikato region and appear to be spreading both north and south of these areas. The presence of koi carp in 3 ornamental ponds at Kauri Point, Katikati which is located in the western Bay of Plenty region was confirmed in late 2006. Because koi carp is designated an unwanted organism under the Biosecurity Act it was decided by the Department of Conservation (DOC) that an attempt to eradicate them from this locality would occur. One possible option for eradication of koi carp in this catchment was the use of and electric fishing boat from the University of Waikato. This boat operates by putting a pulsed DC current into the water column where it attracts and then incapacitates fish, allowing operators to remove them from the water with hand nets.
The Centre for Biodiversity and Ecology Research (CBER) at the University of Waikato was contracted to attempt to eradicate koi carp from the three ponds at Kauri Point by boat-electrofishing. The objectives were (1) to survey the fish abundance, (2) to remove as mand koi as possible in an attempt for eradication and (3) to estimate the proportion of koi carp removed from the system by boat-electrofishing. On 21 and 22 April 2008, a total of 327 fish comprising of 307 koi carp (137.5 kg of biomass), 1 goldfish(Carassius auratus) and 19 koi-goldfish hybrids were captured and removed from the 3 ponds located within the Kauri Point catchment by a combination of electric fishing (307 fish) and gill netting (20 fish). The majority of these fish (299 koi, 1 goldfish, 19 koi-goldfish hybrids) were removed from the largest pond (pond A). Boat-electrofishing caught a wide size range of koi (70 mm to 510 mm) and at least four distinct size classes of koi were apparent. The high proportion of juvenile (<200 mm) caught along with reasonable numbers of mature males and females in pond A strongly suggests that breeding is occurring within the Kauri Point aquatic ecosystem. Results from analysing scales of a small sub sample of koi (n=34) also shows that there was a wide range of ages of pond A (ages 1 to 8 years old). Pond A had a relatively high density of 4.6 koi carp 100 m⁻² compared to pond B and C which had low densities of 0.5 and 0.2 koi carp 100 m⁻² respectively. No juvenile carp were observed to be present in ponds B and C.
Population and total biomass estimates for koi carp in pond A prior to removal of fish were calculated to be 358±66 koi carp and 145.14 ±44.27 kg (mean ±95% C. I) respectively. 299 koi carp or 122.30 kg of biomass (71-84% of the estimated population) were removed from pond A over two days of electric fishing, leaving a possible 125 koi carp or 67.11 kg of biomass remaining in the pond. Boat-electrofishing proved to be a successful too for removing a large proportion of the estimated biomass of koi carp in the Kauri Point ponds. Eradication of koi carp by boat-electrofishing from this system was not possible due to poor water visibility (difficult to spot narcotised carp), limited time allocated and successful koi carp breeding occurring in the ponds. Viable options of koi carp eradication in the Kauri Point catchment would involve the partial draining and poisoning of the three ponds and the associated tributaries where koi carp are found.

year: 2008

title: Why do youth step out of sport and into court? A narrative-based exploration

authors: Clarke, Gloria Hinemoa

subjects: youth

abstract: Motivated by my son’s incarceration months after he stopped playing sport this thesis attempts to answer the questions that plagued me as I began dealing with lawyers, courts, and prison visits: If sport is all that it is supposed to be why is my son sitting in a prison cell?  Had his fourteen years of playing sport been for nothing?  Why hadn’t sport honoured its promise to protect my son from such a reality?    

Consequently, this thesis explores ‘Why youth step out of sport and into court?’  My objective is to provide parents and those interested in youth issues with new research that confirms, supplements, and/or challenges what is arguably ‘known’ about youth sports attrition and deviancy.  However, rather than produce a traditional academic text I offer a polyvocal interpretive narrative text, where my own voice (as mother and academic) has been interwoven with the lived experiences and voices of five young men who had also ‘stepped out of sport and into court’ as well as the voices of published theorists and researchers who have broadened my understanding of the issues.  As a result this thesis honours the lived experiences of the research participants as relayed to me during three semi-structured interviews, and is hopefully engaging enough to encourage you/the reader to think about the issues and to discuss them with others.  

The study highlights the complexities of sport and deviance, in that we live in a world of multiple realities.  For instance, while many of the research participants had had similar experiences they had also come from different social, cultural and historical locations.  Three of the participants had had two parents, two had had two parents living in different locations, and one had been raised by extended family.  Three were raised in environments where gang ideology and drug use were normalised, while the other two had experienced environments to the contrary.  One had been arrested on only two occasions, while the others had been arrested anywhere between five and thirty times before their nineteenth birthday, with charges ranging from painting on public property through to burglary and extreme violence.  Their common experiences included their participation in rugby and/or rugby league; they had participated in sport and crime at the same time; they had been coached by intimidating people, and they had ‘stepped out of sport’ between thirteen and eighteen years old.  

The first take home message is that parents need to be diligent for the duration of their child’s sporting career and to be aware that whilst sports can do great things for young people, sport may also dampen a child’s sensitivity to fear and normalise and reinforce deviant beliefs, attitudes, justifications and orientations.  The second take home message is that it is time for us to consider other forms of sport and physical activity and to give youth the power to define what sport means to them.  Furthermore, if we agree that things need to change, this study recommends that attrition and deviance research be made more accessible and that the interested parties work together rather than independently.

text: Why do youth step out of sport and into court? A narrative-based exploration Motivated by my son’s incarceration months after he stopped playing sport this thesis attempts to answer the questions that plagued me as I began dealing with lawyers, courts, and prison visits: If sport is all that it is supposed to be why is my son sitting in a prison cell?  Had his fourteen years of playing sport been for nothing?  Why hadn’t sport honoured its promise to protect my son from such a reality?    

Consequently, this thesis explores ‘Why youth step out of sport and into court?’  My objective is to provide parents and those interested in youth issues with new research that confirms, supplements, and/or challenges what is arguably ‘known’ about youth sports attrition and deviancy.  However, rather than produce a traditional academic text I offer a polyvocal interpretive narrative text, where my own voice (as mother and academic) has been interwoven with the lived experiences and voices of five young men who had also ‘stepped out of sport and into court’ as well as the voices of published theorists and researchers who have broadened my understanding of the issues.  As a result this thesis honours the lived experiences of the research participants as relayed to me during three semi-structured interviews, and is hopefully engaging enough to encourage you/the reader to think about the issues and to discuss them with others.  

The study highlights the complexities of sport and deviance, in that we live in a world of multiple realities.  For instance, while many of the research participants had had similar experiences they had also come from different social, cultural and historical locations.  Three of the participants had had two parents, two had had two parents living in different locations, and one had been raised by extended family.  Three were raised in environments where gang ideology and drug use were normalised, while the other two had experienced environments to the contrary.  One had been arrested on only two occasions, while the others had been arrested anywhere between five and thirty times before their nineteenth birthday, with charges ranging from painting on public property through to burglary and extreme violence.  Their common experiences included their participation in rugby and/or rugby league; they had participated in sport and crime at the same time; they had been coached by intimidating people, and they had ‘stepped out of sport’ between thirteen and eighteen years old.  

The first take home message is that parents need to be diligent for the duration of their child’s sporting career and to be aware that whilst sports can do great things for young people, sport may also dampen a child’s sensitivity to fear and normalise and reinforce deviant beliefs, attitudes, justifications and orientations.  The second take home message is that it is time for us to consider other forms of sport and physical activity and to give youth the power to define what sport means to them.  Furthermore, if we agree that things need to change, this study recommends that attrition and deviance research be made more accessible and that the interested parties work together rather than independently.

year: 2012

title: On equality and colourblindness

authors: Robertson, Neville

subjects: Maori

abstract: "I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." So said Martin Luther King, Jr, just over 40 years ago, in a speech that galvanised the US civil rights movement. King spoke of the United States but his dream is equally relevant in New Zealand. Has it been achieved? Some people would argue that not only has it been achieved but that the tables have been turned and now white folk are the ones who are oppressed. What is needed, they argue, is a level playing field. But how level is the playing field?

text: On equality and colourblindness "I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." So said Martin Luther King, Jr, just over 40 years ago, in a speech that galvanised the US civil rights movement. King spoke of the United States but his dream is equally relevant in New Zealand. Has it been achieved? Some people would argue that not only has it been achieved but that the tables have been turned and now white folk are the ones who are oppressed. What is needed, they argue, is a level playing field. But how level is the playing field?

year: 2004