Widespread sponge bleaching found in Fiordland: an update from Professor James Bell (VUW)
In May 2022 researchers from my research group, who were working in Fiordland noticed something very unusual in the shallow waters of Te Puaitaha/Breaksea Sound, thousands of the ‘bleached’ white sponges. On closer inspection the sponges were all the same species, the cup sponge Cymastella lamellata, and this bleaching event was subsequently confirmed throughout Tamatea/Dusky, Te Puaitaha/Breaksea and Doubtful/Patea Sounds, and is likely to have occurred throughout the wider Fiordland Marine Area (FMA).