Translocation of black foot pāua (Haliotis iris) in a customary fishery management area: transformation from top-down management to kaitiakitanga (local guardianship) of a cultural keystone

Abstract

Loss of access to cultural keystone species is a familiar story across the Pacific. Serial depletion of pāua (abalone, Haliotis iris), a cultural keystone for Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand, threatens Indigenous practices and values. Kāti Huirapa Rūnaka ki Puketeraki, a hapū (subtribe) of Ngāi Tahu, have struggled for over 30 years to address loss of local pāua populations. Regulations introduced by the East Otago Taiāpure, a customary fishery management area established in 1999, recognise Indigenous rights to access and manage marine resources. Despite concerted efforts to rebuild pāua populations while allowing fishing, pāua have continued to decline and the fishery was closed in 2019. A wealth of mātauranga (Māori knowledge) surrounds enhancement practices for pāua. Here, mātauranga relating to translocation was collated through interviews and applied, in conjunction with additional knowledge bases, to translocate pāua from reefs threatened by sand inundation to more accessible but historically overexploited bays. In total, 420 pāua, translocated across 21 sites, were monitored for a 2-week period, after which aggregations returned to pretranslocation densities. Total mortality reached 8.8% over this time, attributed primarily to predation by the sea star Astrostole scabra. Results suggest that translocation may not be suitable for creating artificial aggregations using the methods applied; however, it could address other management concerns, hence suggestions are made for methodological improvements. The interaction between pāua and A. scabra demonstrates the need for continued transformation in management to allow for the application of a multispecies integrated approach in the restoration of pāua.