Rosehill Intermediate School

A visit to Echinoderm Reef with 15 students was successful with finds of sea hares, clown nudibranchs, crabs, flatworms and much more. Then off we went snorkelling, but unfortunately the swell had risen and reduced visibility.

Te Hihi School

December 1st we took students from Te Hihi School snorkelling. Visibility was really good and sea conditions calm. The students were very good snorkellers. We saw plenty of jellyfish, snapper, drummer, leatherjackets and so much more.

Otamarakau School

November 30th a lovely group of students from Otamarakau School came snorkelling with us. Perfect sea conditions with clear, calm water and sunshine. Lots of non-stinging jellyfish floating everywhere. Fed on by leatherjackets and some snapper. Saw one eagle ray.

Birkdale Intermediate School

Students visited the Goat Island Marine Reserve on November 22nd. They met at Goat Island Dive for their snorkelling equipment. Discover Goat Island instructors, Tony and Jenny Enderby then took them snorkelling. Good calm sea conditions and nice clear water. It was a thrill for everyone when a small pod of bottlenose dolphins came through the reserve.Discover Goat Island.

Singapore group

Saturday November 20th 45 students from Singapore visited Goat Island where they took a trip on the glass bottom boat. We then showed them the marine life on the rocky shore and after lunch they did transects on Echinoderm Reef. The weather wasn't looking good but turned out beautiful. Discover Goat Island

Whangaparaoa College

Calm seas and good underwater visibility for snorkelling at Goat Island today. Not much sun though. Huge numbers of snapper seen, plus parore, goatfish, red moki and marblefish. Some very big crayfish around Shag Rock. The students were guided by Discover Goat Island As usual we met up at the Goat Island Dive shop, next to the Sawmill Cafe in Leigh, to collect the snorkelling equipment.

Birkdale Primary School

A perfect day for snorkelling in the Goat Island Marine Reserve. Students saw snapper, red moki, eaglerays, goatfish, blue maomao, parore and more. Calm, clear and sunny conditions. Some awesome parents accompanied us in the water! The juniors visited the rocky shore where they were guided by a biologist. They saw sea hares, nudibranchs, crabs, kina, seastars and a variety of other marine life.

Kaiaua School

Another perfect day to bring a school group snorkelling at Goat Island. Calm, clear water and plenty of fish to see. One very large jellyfish, but we stayed away from it! Large snapper and red moki, plus the usual other fish.

Rotorua Students

October 3rd was calm and clear at Goat Island and we had the pleasure of showing six nice teenage girls how to snorkel. We saw plenty of fish and some big eagle rays. Everyone stayed warm with the sun shining down over us.

Mt Albert Grammar School

The first week of the 2nd term turned out great weather at Goat Island with water temperature around 19-20 deg. We took 35 students snorkelling where they practised their skills in a natural environment. Fish included red moki, leatherjackets, snapper, bluecod, blue maomao, butterfish and more. Nice to have such perfect conditions for the 16-17 years old to enjoy the marine reserve.

Massey High School

A small group of students from Massey High School visited Leigh and came snorkelling with Discover Goat Island guides Tony and Jenny Enderby. The group snorkelled out past Shag Rock and alongside the island where they saw snapper, red moki, hiwihiwi, sweep, eaglerays and much more. A most successful day for all.

Northcote Intermediate School

Over 8 days Discover Goat Island guides, Tony and Jenny Enderby, took around 200 students snorkelling at Tawharanui. Each day a class arrived, put up tents and did three activities: snorkelling, kayaking and beach games. Most days there was too much swell to safety snorkel off the main beach, so the students were taken to the alternative beach on the other side of the peninsula to snorkel at Jones Beach.
There were little spotties, snapper, goatfish, eagleray and piper. Many students also saw octopus, squid, live trumpet shells, live scallops, anemones, sea urchins, seaweed and other marine life.
It was noted that the students were extremely helpful towards each other and were a pleasure to take out.

Cottey College

A small group of students and 2 professors were taken snorkelling in the Goat Island Marine Reserve by experienced guides, Tony and Jenny Enderby of Discover Goat Island. The students were from Cottey College which is based in Nevada, Missouri, USA. After the snorkelling Tony and Jenny talked about the creation of the marine reserve and changes over the past 35 years there. Changes include the marine life as well as the local community and businesses in the area.
When the marine reserve was created it was thought that no-one would come to Goat Island as they weren't allowed to catch fish or collect anything. Once the fish returned and stayed, scuba divers were drawn to the reserve and gradually word filtered out and more and more visitors came. Now Goat Island is one of the major tourist places in New Zealand, especially for visitors who want to see the marine life either by diving, snorkelling or from the glass bottom boat.

Thames High School

Tony Enderby talked to students at the Goat Island Marine Reserve for approx. one hour. The creation of the marine reserve was covered, along with changes to the marine life over the past 35 years. Changes to businesses that work in the reserve, benefits to the community and benefits to marine education were all discussed. Students asked excellent questions and were very interested in the information talked about.

Silverdale School

Tony gave a talk on the history of the marine reserve at Goat Island Bay to students of Silverdale School. He talked about changes in the marine reserve since everything was protected and the marine life there. The students then took a trip on the glass bottom boat to learn and see more the marine life around the island and reserve.

Stanley Bay School

Stanley Bay School visited the Goat Island Marine Reserve on Friday February 26th. Discover Goat Island guides, Tony and Jenny Enderby, took 42 students snorkelled in three groups. Each group was rotated with taking a trip on the Glass Bottom Boat and exploring and learning about the rocky shore with a marine expert.
Weather conditions were great and the water was clear and 22degC. We saw numerous snapper, piper, red moki, leatherjackets, blue maomao and parore amongst other marine life.

LEARNZ

On February 24 ,25 and 26 Learnz did a field trip to the Goat Island Marine Reserve. Over 200 schools registered, learning more about the marine reserve inhabitants and activities. Check out www.learnz.org.nz for more information.