Lake Okowhao is a small (8ha) riverine lake north of Huntly. It discharges to the Waikato river via an old oxbow enhanced to provide tuna habitat. Historically used as a food bowl for surrounding marae, the lake now has poor water quality and is dominated by pest fish. The catchment (about 390ha) is mainly dairy farming. The main inflow, which drains most of the catchment, flows through private wetland to the south and has slowly filled it with sediment over this time. The lake is also boardered by a 14.6ha fenced wetland on public reserve land and has a mix of native emergent vegetation zone and invasive plant species (www.restorationstrategy.nz).
Main image by David G. Schmale III, Virginia Tech, https://www.schmalelab.spes.vt.edu/
