Explore the Poor Knights Islands
Twenty-three kilometres from New Zealand’s Tutukaka Coast, Poor Knights Islands offers some of the world’s most spectacular subtropical diving. As well as being a protected marine reserve the islands are located in New Zealand’s most productive waters, ensuring there is no shortage of marine life! Prepare to witness dolphins, whales, stingrays, and teeming schools of fish while exploring. With volcanic origins, scuba diving in the Poor Knights Islands features tunnels, caves, archways, grottoes, chimneys, and spectacular drop-offs.
Situated a 30-minute drive from the city of Whangarei, a couple of dive centres can be found on the Tutukaka Coast. The dive centres in the area offer dive courses from open water through to instructor training, where training usually takes place in a pool close to the dive centre.
Dive Activity
Diving in the Poor Knights Islands
Rated by Jacques Cousteau - the world’s most famous underwater explorer - as one of the top 10 dive sites in the world, Poor Knights Island is home to the world’s largest surveyed sea cave, Riko Riko Cave. With the entire area designated as a marine reserve and nature reserve, the 11 million-year-old islands host impressive drop-offs, walls, arches, and tunnels. Pinnacles such as Fred’s Pinnacle experience strong currents and large numbers of pelagic fish while the islands’ volcanic origins see underwater caverns formed at almost every dive site. Throw in the nearby wrecks of the Tui and the Waikato, and divers have everything they need for an incredible dive experience.
Top Wildlife Sightings in the Poor Knights Islands
In 1981, the Poor Knights Islands officially became New Zealand’s second marine reserve. Over 125 species of fish inhabit the sheer volcanic walls, enormous sea caves, arches, pinnacles and dense kelp forests. Impenetrable shoals of blue maomao and trevally can be witnessed while huge aggregations of bull rays, long-tail and short-tail stingray, as well as manta ray, are seen gliding gracefully at several of the islands’ dive sites. During the summer months, stingrays gather in large numbers to mate and are preyed upon by visiting pods of orca whales. There is also a wealth of smaller creatures including brilliantly coloured nudibranch and invertebrates. As if it couldn’t get any better than it already is, bronze whaler sharks are also often sighted.
Wildlife Sightings are Based on User Generated Content
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 200
Alamy-WaterFrame
515 Sightings
J
96
F
67
M
100
A
48
M
24
J
29
J
6
A
5
S
12
O
20
N
44
D
64
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 600
iStock/ultramarinfoto
Wrasse
230 Sightings
J
42
F
52
M
20
A
19
M
9
J
5
J
2
A
2
S
4
O
10
N
24
D
41
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 25
iStock/Juliosanjuan
Eagle Ray
174 Sightings
J
42
F
21
M
42
A
11
M
13
J
4
J
1
A
1
S
5
O
7
N
14
D
13
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 110
iStock-Rainer von Brandis
Snapper
480 Sightings
J
93
F
46
M
92
A
44
M
21
J
29
J
11
A
3
S
15
O
26
N
44
D
56
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 250
iStock-Miguel-Angelo-Silva.
Scorpionfish
421 Sightings
J
81
F
50
M
74
A
40
M
18
J
15
J
8
A
5
S
11
O
26
N
30
D
63
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 80
iStock/Extreme-Photographer
Stingrays
400 Sightings
J
88
F
48
M
94
A
36
M
18
J
6
J
5
A
4
S
11
O
14
N
26
D
50
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 3000
SSI-Peter-Schinck
Nudibranch
307 Sightings
J
56
F
39
M
51
A
25
M
11
J
7
J
5
A
5
S
14
O
16
N
28
D
50
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 90
Shutterstock-Rich Carey
Angelfish
194 Sightings
J
33
F
38
M
31
A
15
M
0
J
6
J
2
A
1
S
5
O
6
N
14
D
43
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 350
Alamy-Andre Seal
Damselfish
155 Sightings
J
28
F
38
M
10
A
13
M
3
J
9
J
0
A
1
S
3
O
6
N
15
D
29
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 90
Shutterstock-Levent Konuk
Goatfish
144 Sightings
J
27
F
24
M
26
A
16
M
1
J
6
J
4
A
0
S
3
O
9
N
13
D
15
The best Months to Dive in the Poor Knights Islands
The islands are located in the North Island which is New Zealand’s warmest region.
Poor Knights Islands diving sees two distinct seasons: the summer between November and April and the winter months between May and September. During the summer, the water temperature can reach 20°C–23°C/68°F–73°F and is the best time of year to witness stingrays and orcas. However, the warmer weather can induce plankton blooms, which see visibility that averages 20 meters/65 feet. In the winter months, the water temperature drops to as low as 14°C–16°C/57°F–61°F, while the visibility improves, reaching over 30 meters/98 feet on a good diving day.
