![\"Pukepuke](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/4JQ5367_Pukepuke_Lagoon__1_jpg.jpeg\")
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\nEels died at Pukepuke Lagoon after a period of dry weather.
\nPhoto: LDR \/ Supplied \/ Rangit\u0101ne o Manawat\u016b Settlement Trust\n<\/p>\n
More than a month after eels and fish died when a coastal Manawat\u016b lake dried out<\/a>, the cause is yet to be revealed.<\/p>\n Thousands of eels were rescued from Pukepuke Lagoon by local iwi in early April, when regional council staff discovered the water had gone, after a period of dry weather.<\/p>\n This week, Department of Conservation operations manager Moana Smith-Dunlop said it was working with iwi to finalise the scope and timeframe of an investigation.<\/p>\n “The cause of the drying event is unknown,” she said. “We are concerned and committed to developing a clearer understanding of what is driving water levels and the lagoon’s role within the wider coastal water systems.”<\/p>\n Pukepuke Lagoon covers about 15 hectares on conservation land between Himatangi and Tangimoana.<\/p>\n Smith-Dunlop said no estimate was available on the number of eel deaths and it was now thought about 1500-2000 were rescued. The survival rate wasn’t known.<\/p>\n \nA dead fish in the lagoon (File photo) Meanwhile, the lake was filling again.<\/p>\n “DOC rangers monitored water levels following the discovery,” she said. “Approximately a week after the incident, there was a good amount of rainfall, which helped raise the water level in the lagoon.”<\/p>\n An Horizons Regional Council spokesperson said the water level of the lake was now about 500mm.<\/p>\n When the drying was discovered, dozens of local iwi volunteers joined rescue efforts at the lake<\/a>, as eels were relocated to nearby waterways.<\/p>\n Many dead eels and fish were on the lake bed.<\/p>\n![\"Birds](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4JQ6QQC_Eel_fish_JPG_1.jpeg\")
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\nPhoto: RNZ\/Jimmy Ellingham\n<\/p>\n