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Lake Waikōpiro

Tūtira and Waikōpiro are twin lakes located alongside SH2 north of Napier. These are culturally significant lakes as they were food and resting sites on an ancient Māori travelling trail. Waikōpiro flows into Tūtira under a narrow strip of land, and the two lakes are effectively one during high water levels. A DOC wildlife reserve and HBRC's regional park border the lake as well as private land. 

Waikōpiro is much smaller than Tūtira at 11 hectares and a depth of around 15 metres.  The lakes were formed by a land-slip at least 7,200 years ago.

The highly erodible catchment was enriched with phosphorus via aerial topdressing during the late 1940s and 50s. Water quality problems became apparent in the late 1950s and both lakes have been prone to problematic cyanobacterial blooms for decades.

The nearby Tūtira Regional Park is a demonstration site for sustainable land management, and as well as enhanced wetlands, native bush and an arboretum, has a trial plantation of high UMF manuka; the aim is to find how well this scrub cover performs to improve water quality and provide a profitable crop on steep Hawke’s Bay hillsides.

An ongoing MPI-led project is aimed at eradicating the invasive macrophyte Hydrilla verticillata from Lakes Tūtira, Waikōpiro and Opouahi using grass carp. NIWA have been leading this work programme and are reporting promising results with minimal Hydrilla plants now present, and a recovery of the freshwater mussel population. 

A DOC wildlife reserve and HBRC's regional park border the lake as well as private land. 

Lake Summary
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Scientific data for this lake

This dashboard shows information on the data collected by the regional councils and unitary authorities for two indicators of lake water quality and ecological condition: TLI (Trophic Level Index) and LakeSPI (Lake Submerged Plant Indicators).  Select an indicator to see the historical results.

  • Water Quality

    Trophic Level Index (TLI)

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    The TLI score is an indicator of lake health and is determined from a suite of water quality measurements.

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    Trophic Level Index (TLI) history for this lake

    The TLI score for a lake is calculated from four water quality measurements – chlorophyll a, total nitrogen, total phosphorus and water clarity. If water clarity is unavailable, TLI is calculated using the other three water quality measurements. A higher score indicates poorer water quality.

    View a factsheet on TLI

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    TLI history for Lake Waikōpiro
    Year

    What do the icons mean?

    VERY GOOD
    Very good water quality. Trophic Level Index of 0-2. Microtrophic lake conditions.
    GOOD
    Good water quality. Trophic Level Index of 2-3. Oligotrophic lake conditions.
    FAIR
    Average water quality. Trophic Level Index of 3-4. Mesotrophic lake conditions.
    POOR
    Poor water quality. Trophic Level Index of 4-5. Eutrophic lake conditions.
    VERY POOR
    Very poor water quality. Trophic Level Index of greater than 5. Supertrophic lake conditions.
    NO DATA
    No data available.
    TLI history for Lake Waikōpiro data table
    Year TLI Score
    Year TLI Score
     Download data
  • Ecological Conditions

    Lake Submerged Plant Indicators (LakeSPI)

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    The LakeSPI status describes the ecological condition of the lake and is based on plants present.

    LakeSPI data provided by NIWA

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    LakeSPI history for this lake

    LakeSPI (Lake Submerged Plant Indicators) is a method of characterising the ecological condition of lakes based on the composition of native and invasive plants growing in them. A higher LakeSPI percentage result is associated with better ecological health:

    LakeSPI N/A
    LakeSPI {{spiData.details.Value}}%

    The overall LakeSPI score is calculated using a Native Condition Index ('good' plants) and an Invasive Impact Index (introduced, non-native plants):

    Native Condition N/A
    Native Condition {{spiData.details.NativeIndex}}%
    Invasive Impact N/A
    Invasive Impact {{spiData.details.InvasiveIndex}}% NA

    A higher Native Condition value indicates better ecological condition, but a higher Invasive Impact value indicates invasive plants are negatively impacting native plant communities.
    View a factsheet on LakeSPI for more information on these indicators.

    • LakeSPI
    • Native Condition
    • Invasive Impact
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    LakeSPI history for Lake Waikōpiro
    Year

    What is this graph showing me?

    This graph is displaying the overall LakeSPI score over time. The results denote the ecological condition of the lake.

    EXCELLENT
    Excellent ecological health. A LakeSPI score of 75-100%.
    HIGH
    High ecological health. A LakeSPI score of 50-75%.
    MODERATE
    Moderate ecological health. A LakeSPI score of 20-50%.
    POOR
    Poor ecological health. A LakeSPI score of 0-20%.
    NON-VEG
    Non-vegetated. A LakeSPI score of 0% (there are no plants present).
    NO DATA
    No data available.
    LakeSPI history for Lake Waikōpiro data table
    Sample Date LakeSPI Status LakeSPI % Native Condition Index % Invasive Impact Index %
    LakeSPI information has been provided by NIWA.
Sites

Monitored sites on Lake Waikōpiro

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