Hidden treasure gifted to aquarium

A treasure trove of living coral has been gifted to The National Aquarium of New Zealand.

The coral, said to be one of the largest private coral collections in New Zealand and worth around $10,000, contains many rare species collected over a ten year period.

Currently coral enthusiast Clif Carson houses his extensive collection at his home in Invercargill in a specially built Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) certified quarantine room. Now the collection, which includes a number of imported species, has become so large it has outgrown its location.

National Aquarium of New Zealand manager Rob Yarrall says the vibrant and generous gift will become the largest live coral collection on public display in New Zealand.

“We are really excited about housing such a significant collection of rare and interesting coral, with some species not seen anywhere else in the country,” says Rob.

“We already have an impressive display of marine wonders, and the addition of living coral adds a whole new dimension to what aquarium visitors can enjoy when they come here. Corals are becoming endangered around the world due to climate change and pollution increase in our oceans, so to adopt and grow our own collection is extremely important.”

Despite numerous offers from various interested parties to buy the collection, Clif wanted to donate his beloved coral to a new owner with the knowledge, expertise and ability to look after it properly.

After visiting The National Aquarium several years ago, Clif and his wife Carol identified a potential home for their treasure. So when Clif decided to retire from his full-time coral collecting hobby recently he contacted Napier staff to discuss the likelihood of the aquarium becoming the new home for his treasures.

The generous donation is appreciated by aquarium staff, who can not wait for the coral to arrive in Napier. There are some logistical challenges to overcome first, however. The fragile collection must travel from Invercargill to Napier within a very tight timeframe to ensure the coral not only arrives undamaged but alive.

“Each coral has to be individually removed from the reef, placed into specialist thick plastic bag containing salt water, packed into polystyrene and then placed into boxes with heat pads underneath,” says Rob.

Getting the collection to Napier within about 24 hours when there is no direct flight on offer from Invercargill is one of the hurdles to overcome; this will mean a mixture of road and air freight. The transportation cost is significant and unbudgeted for, but Rob says this is not the kind of special gift they could refuse.

“A coral collection like this is not easily come by. We can’t wait to have it here, and we will work through the logistics to make it happen! Hopefully there is someone out there willing to support us – if there is we’d love to hear from you!”

Once the coral has been re-located the next challenge is to build a new permanent home for the extensive collection. This will involve designing a new display next to our existing marine exhibit on the first floor of the National Aquarium of New Zealand building.

“Making it all come together will involve a lot of hard work but in the long run it will be fantastic for the aquarium,” says Rob.

“Once the coral is settled into its new home there will be a very bright outcome for the whole country to enjoy!”

Website: www.nationalaquarium.co.nz