Press release: Threatened Northland mudfish takes out Fish of the Year crown after late surge

The Northland mudfish has completed a remarkable victory in Fish of the Year 2026, having first taken the lead with less than 24 hours left to run. It takes the crown from the blobfish, whose viral 2025 victory took the competition to an international audience.

The mudfish prevailed despite vigorous campaigning from its competitors, with scales flying in schools, dive shops, and on airwaves and social media across the country. All up, 5896 New Zealanders cast their vote, a new record, with confirmed voters spanning the length of the country.

The mudfish sat well outside the top 10 at the halfway point of the competition, its lack of size and tendency to bury itself in the mud not impressing swing voters. 

The decision by Northland Regional Council (NRC) to back the fish proved pivotal, as did vocal support from More FM Northland.Nick Bamford, NRC spokesperson and Environmental Monitoring Officer - Coastal, was grateful to Northlanders and New Zealanders who got behind the mudfish. “Thank you all so much for supporting a secretive, sleepy little fish from Taitokerau and taking the time to vote! We are so lucky to have two species of mudfish in our rohe (the Northland and black mudfish), so this win is a nod to them both.”

Despite growing no longer than 15cm, the mudfish overcame heavyweight pace-setters big belly seahorse, whale shark, and longfin eel on its way to victory. It also outlasted controversial late ‘Honorary Fish’ entrant Jono Ridler, who swam gamely into 5th place with support from Live Ocean.

It was a bitter hook to swallow for longin eel | tuna kūwharuwharu. Sponsor Matuku Link, who entered the final weekend one hundred votes ahead, was gracious in defeat. Spokesperson Grac Coyle said they were, “...very proud at how well the longfin eel did throughout the competition and we would have loved the crown. Thank you for the aroha that the tuna kūwharuwharu received from our community! These taonga are clearly well loved and have a place in the hearts of people across Aotearoa.”  

Mountains to Sea Conservation Trust, hosts of the competition, were delighted by the campaign.

“The Northland Mudfish is the first freshwater fish to win the competition, and it’s also the smallest winner we’ve had”, said Mountains to Sea Poutokomanawa (Co-Director) Samara Nicholas. “We’re happy such a quirky little critter sparked peoples’ imagination.”

She says the victory shines a spotlight on the five mudfish species in New Zealand, and the battles they face for survival. 

“We’ve drained around 90% of our wetlands in the last 150 years, and it has had a disastrous impact on our native galaxiids - including mudfish,” says Nicholas. “We urgently need to protect and restore wetlands and riparian areas across the country to give freshwater fish like the Northland mudfish a fighting chance.”

Nicholas was also positive about Northland Rugby Union’s offer to rename the Northland Taniwha the Northland Mudfish in the event of victory. “We think the mudfish would be a great regional ambassador. The more visibility our weird and wonderful ika can get, the more likely we are to protect them now and into the future.”

ENDS

Northland mudfish. Image credit: Patricia Hawkins, Mountains to Sea