Ohiwa Harbour is situated in the eastern Bay of Plenty in the North Island of New Zealand. 

Harbour
  • Covers about 26 square kilometres
  • Was formed around 6,000 years ago
  • It is protected by two sand spits, 6km long on the west (Ohope)
    and less than 1km on the east (Ohiwa)
  • Has a number of islands, including Ohakana, Uretara, Hokianga 
    and Pataua.
 
Water catchment
  • Starts about 35km inland, south of Waimana, covering around 170 square kilometres
  • Has 12 major streams and the Nukuhou River
  • Includes land used for forestry, drystock/dairy farming, horticulture, lifestyle blocks and
    residential living
  • Is about half in pasture, half forest cover (indigenous and exotic) in the upper catchment.
 
People
  • Ohiwa is an ancestral taonga of significance to many Maori groups such as Ngati Awa,
    Upokorehe, Whakatohea and Tuhoe
  • 3,500 people live in the water catchment area
  • 2,000 are in residential areas at Ohiwa, Kutarere and Ohope.

Birdlife
  • Birds of the harbour include the banded dotterel, black shag, fernbird, bar-tailed godwit,
    Australasian bittern, variable oystercatcher, New Zealand dotterel, red-billed and
    blackbilled gulls
  • A wide range of local and migratory birds find safe haven in and around Ohiwa. Large
    flocks can gather on the mud flats - less visible amongst the saltmarsh are endangered
    species like mohu-pereru, the banded rail.
  • Kuaka, the godwit, flies across the Pacific from the Arctic every spring, and back every
    autumn - 11,000 km each way.
  • Ohiwa Harbour is also home to a population of kukuruatu, the New Zealand dotterel. This
    species nests in dunes, making the birds highly vulnerable to human disturbance. The
    North Island form of the species numbers only 1,400 nationwide.

Estuary Life
  • Ohiwa is a spawning ground for a number of fresh water species including inanga 
    (whitebait) and tuna (native eels)
  • Ohiwa’s tidal flats teem with life, including many species of crabs, shellfish, heart
    urchins, snails and worms
  • Many species of salt water fish spawn, feed and shelter in Ohiwa Harbour

This booklet contains further information on Ohiwa Harbour, including what you can do to help protect the harbour.