A large hole that appears to be the start of a cave has been dug on the tiny sandstone Motungaegnae, or Watchman, Island in the Waitemata Harbour, 600m off Herne Bay. Herne Bay resident and regular kayaker Mike van Niekerk said he had watched with surprise in the past few weeks as the cave or hole was dug. "The island is mainly weedy and eroding but there's a threatened New Zealand native species of geranium, Geranium retrorsum, just managing to hold on there. I'd be disappointed if the cave excavations had threatened the geranium but it's impossible to say without visiting," he said. "The island is eroding naturally so someone digging a cave would possibly speed up that erosion," Cameron said.

Source: New Zealand Herald April 03, 2017 22:07 UTC