DOC staff half-jokingly call the stretches of Hawke’s Bay rivers with artificial spawning mats ‘love zones’, but Matt says it’s actually an apt description. The conditions need to be just right for this to happen, but unfortunately the cyclone severely compromised many spawning habitats in the Hawke’s Bay. “Artificial spawning habitats in ‘love zones’ help us identify spawning sites, and give īnanga a boost. This year, DOC has extended the love zones, working with Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, Ngāti Pāhauwera, and Waimārama hapū members. Matt says love zones aren’t only about making īnanga babies, although that’s very important.