Marine Reserve survey diver

Kutu Parera marine reserve at Gaer Arm in Bradshaw Sound contains around 433 hectares of marine habitat and was one of eight marine reserves established in 2005 as part of the management measures proposed by the Fiordland Marine Guardians.

The reserve includes large areas of estuarine habitat at the entrance of the Camelot River. It has a relatively shallow basin which extends from the sediment fan at Camelot and reaches depths of over 100 metres at the entrance to Gaer Arm. The eastern side of the reserve contains extensive rock wall habitats with some vertical drops to 50-60 metres. These are home to many anemones and other colourful sessile suspension feeders.

Most of the eastern side of the reserve faces south and is shaded from direct sunlight. The western side of Gaer Arm has more broken rocky reef habitat, with underwater boulders and one large river outflow.

Cockle and pipi beds in the estuarine habitat of the Camelot River are amongst the largest populations of these species found in Doubtful Sound. The sediment fans have significant beds of these bivalves which can be a common source of food for fishes such as groper and tarakihi. There are also areas of sea grass flats, and debris from the river

View a map of Kutu Parera (Gaer Arm) Marine Reserve

Know before you go

There are protection measures in place to help minimise the potential impact of vessel activity on the Doubtful Sound bottlenose dolphin population - see Doubtful Sound marine mammal code of management.