A Wairarapa landowner is being prosecuted over the death of several hundred native eels.
Greater Wellington regional council says illegal work in a stream draining into Lake Wairarapa caused the deaths.
It says Lloyd Rayner used a digger to clear plant life and excavate the stream bed to drain about five hectares of wetland in March.
Council spokesperson Nic Conland says several hundred longfin and shortfin eels died in the process, either crushed by the excavation or left on the banks to die.
Mr Conland says the removal of sediment and vegetation has also affected other smaller fish species.
