Movement of larvae has been modelled in the Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana / Te Moananui-ā-Toi. It’s beautiful to watch and I wish I could share it with you. No matter where the larvae start off they pulse north south with tidal rhythms that make it look like the Gulf is breathing. Depending on the swell, wind direction and currents they drift for 10’s of kilometres in all directions connecting east, west, north and south.
In this video I have tried to visualise what I saw and felt looking at the modelling work. I have used our six tiny marine reserves because they make a disproportionate contribution to breathing life in to the Gulf.
If you want to know about shellfish larvae in the Gulf I recommend this blog post.
UPDATE: I found a video with a biophysical larvae modeling from Auckland University scientists it’s at 1:10:50 here.