Fishes
The national Fishes Collection held by Te Papa is by far the largest in the world from the New Zealand region of the Southwest Pacific Ocean. First started in 1869, it now comprises over 39,000 catalogued lots, each lot containing one or more specimens. These include over 1700 type specimens, the original specimens on which published descriptions of new species are based.
Coupled with the collection is a computerised database. This contains detailed information on the habitat from which each lot was obtained and the specific location where it was collected.
As a direct result of research on the national Fishes Collection, the known fish fauna of New Zealand has doubled over the last fifteen years. It continues to increase at the rate of a new species every two to three weeks.
Reliable descriptive information on our fish fauna is required by the fishing industry, regulatory authorities, and researchers to underpin the conservation, management, and utilisation of this diverse and valuable natural resource.
Find out about the research projects being undertaken by our fish experts.
Something Fishy is prepared by Te Papa fish section staff. Items report on fishes of particular interest to anglers and museum scientists, especially rare and unusual species, which are often difficult to identify.These articles were first published in the angling magazine New Zealand Fishing News.
Our fish experts put out feature articles on a monthly basis in publications like Seafood New Zealand magazine. In addition to these articles they also publish papers on a regular basis.