There's plenty to see and do at the estuary.
The estuary walkway provides beautiful views, and there are signs along the way providing information about some of the birds you might see.
There is a lot of interesting wildlife at the estuary. As well as birds, the estuary is also home to some interesting plants and is an important habitat for native fish.
The Manawatū Estuary Trust enjoys giving people the opportunity to learn more about this amazing environ
Karaihe/European Marram Grass Calamagrostris arenaria
Probably the worst pest species we have in the dune system at Foxton Beach. It wasn’t always thought to be and had previously been widely planted as a means of stabilising sand erosion.
It has proven to be a short-term solution because of it being a deep-rooted species which creates high dunes through its deep penetrating roots. Unfortunately, as can be seen in the photograph opposite, these can cause the dune to collapse.
The planting of native sand-binders such as Pingao and Spinifex has been undertaken at the dunes for several years now, and in time, will hopefully prove to be a better solution than Marram.
It has been proven that seed can remain viable for over 20 years at up to depths of 4 m of sand. Wind erosion could bring these to the surface at a future date. View article abstract here.
