The early stages of Greenshell mussel farming are often extremely inefficient, with fewer than 1% of spat seeded onto farms retained through to harvest. One of the reasons for this, particularly in the North Island, is extremely high levels of fish predation. 

 Despite plenty of reports from industry on the scale of fish predation in the Coromandel, there has been no research carried out with the aim of quantifying its impacts. As a result, there are currently no effective approaches for mitigating the issue. This project is focused on quantifying the magnitude of fish predation on mussel farms, identifying the fish species most responsible, and on developing practical strategies for limiting fish predation. 

 Please see the project updates for progress to date or for more information get in touch with us via the Contact Page.

 This project is possible thanks to the MFA, CMFA, TNC, MPI, UoA, and University of New England.