The discovery of so many new species was “a huge surprise” and exceeded all expectations, said Professor James Bell, a marine biologist at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington and leader of the research team.  

“We set out expecting we might find a few new species—if we were lucky. We had no idea of how many different sponges the fiords hold. It seems crazy because we dive so much there, but we have just been swimming past all these beautiful, undescribed sponges,” said Professor Bell.  

Sponges play a vital role in the marine environment, recycling nutrients and forming “sponge gardens” that provide habitat for fish and other species.  

Dr Michelle Kelly, a sponge taxonomist specialist at Earth Sciences New Zealand, confirmed 41 of the sponge species collected in Fiordland were undescribed and have yet to be named. They add to the approximately 1,700 sponge species already known to live in waters around Aotearoa New Zealand.  

The sponges were collected during a research trip in April to investigate the distribution of these animals in Fiordland and how it differs between the inner and outer parts of the fiords. Back in the lab, the sponge specimens were compared with samples of known species held in a collection at Earth Sciences New Zealand.  

Dr Kelly described the study of taxonomy—identifying, naming, and describing species—as “like a good Agatha Christie novel, putting all the clues together to get an answer”. Finding new and undescribed species was “very exciting, although not unexpected give the sheer abundance of sponges on the vertical walls of the fiords and the lack of previous formal research on Fiordland sponges,” she said.  

Sponge identification starts by creating “spicule preparations”, where sponge tissues are dissolved to reveal the calcium carbonate and silica spicules—tiny parts of the sponge skeleton. These spicules are used along with other characteristics—including shape, colour, texture, mucus production, and even smell—to classify different species.  

Dr Francesca Strano, a post-doctoral research fellow at Te Herenga Waka who worked with Dr Kelly, said identifying and describing the new species was crucial for effectively managing and conserving Fiordland’s marine ecosystems, and tracking changes in the environment.  

“Species identification takes a lot of time but is really important for managing our oceans, particularly when there is still so much biodiversity we have yet to discover, often just under our noses,” said Dr Strano.  

The study is one of the projects of the Southern Fiordland Initiative, a research collaboration aiming to find out more about the marine environment in the fiords and how it is changing. The George Mason Charitable Trust and Te Herenga Waka provided funding for the research.

New Zealand’s residential construction costs have risen around 61% since 2015, compared with a 33% rise in the Consumers Price Index (CPI) — highlighting how building costs have surged ahead of everyday prices.

The data, drawn from QV CostBuilder, New Zealand’s largest subscription-based construction-cost platform, shows that building-cost inflation has run at roughly 1.8 times the pace of general inflation over the past ten years.

“Over the past decade, our data shows the cost of building a standard 175m² home rose 61%, compared with a 33% rise in general consumer prices,” said QV CostBuilder Quantity Surveyor Martin Bisset. “That’s a 28-percentage-point gap — building-cost inflation has been running well over one and a half times the pace of overall inflation.”

Since its launch in 2015, QV CostBuilder has provided those working in the construction industry including builders, quantity surveyors, valuers, architects, students and councils, with trusted data to help price and plan projects. The platform now tracks more than 61,000 rates and 18,000+ material and installer prices nationwide, updated monthly.

Mr Bisset said that while the last decade included dramatic spikes — particularly through 2021–2022 when global supply chains were disrupted and material costs soared — more recent years have brought greater stability. “We’ve seen the cost of construction flatten out since 2023, with annual increases back down around 1% in 2025,” he said.

Some materials have risen far faster than the average. Cedar weatherboards recorded the greatest increase tracked by QV CostBuilder, rising from $17 per metre in 2015 to a high of $64 in 2022, before easing back to $53 today. Shadowclad exterior plywood is up 110%, windows 72%, and steel sheet roofing 76%. Radiata pine clear flooring climbed 122%, carpet 41%, ready-mix concrete 43%, and Radiata pine framing 45%. Plywood saw one of the lowest rises, up just 12%. Construction labour costs increased slightly higher than CPI, up about 35%.

Non-residential buildings (excluding educational) rose 42% over the decade — quite a bit less than residential increases.

“There’s no doubt the past decade has been one of the most extraordinary periods for New Zealand’s construction industry,” said Mr Bisset. “QV CostBuilder’s consistent data has helped professionals benchmark costs and plan with greater confidence through some very challenging years.”

Many salaries in New Zealand have also failed to keep pace with inflation, rising much less than 33% over the past decade, making the affordability challenge even more pronounced for those wanting to build homes.

Over the past ten years, 439,000 individual costs have been updated within QV CostBuilder, helping subscribers save thousands of hours of research time. The platform delivers reliable, data-driven insights, providing ten years of support and 0% guesswork for construction professionals who rely on it to cost and plan projects with precision.

Since its launch, QV CostBuilder has continued to evolve — with new tools like Pick Lists for customised rate downloads, and close supplier engagement to keep data current and credible. As the construction sector looks to the next decade, QV CostBuilder continues to expand— providing the trusted foundation professionals need to plan, price, and build smarter.

QV CostBuilder is powered by state-owned enterprise Quotable Value (QV) and remains New Zealand’s most comprehensive subscription-based building-cost platform, covering everything from square-metre rates for homes, schools, and offices to material and labour pricing.

Mr Bisset added that to celebrate 10 years of QV CostBuilder, the company is offering $50* off new subscriptions for those who sign up by 14 November 2025 using the promo code COUNT-ME-IN. Go to costbuilder.qv.co.nz for more details.
*T&Cs apply

ASB has today reduced six of its fixed home lending rates, including a market-leading 18-month term.

ASB’s Executive General Manager Personal Banking Adam Boyd says “These rate reductions will be welcome news to the thousands of households looking to refix their mortgages or begin their home ownership journey.”

ASB also reduced its term deposit rates.

All rate decreases are effective Tuesday 21st October.

Consumers are responding to soaring electricity prices by turning to modern energy-efficient technologies, says energy efficiency expert Dr Chris Mardon, Managing Director of Christchurch-based company Ecobulb.

According to Statistics New Zealand, electricity costs rose by 11% in the year to September, the steepest annual increase since 1989.

“These increases are significant, and more are expected as Transpower and lines companies continue to invest heavily in upgrading the electricity network,” says Dr Mardon. “As a result we’re seeing a surge in interest from households wanting to take control of their energy use.”

Dr Mardon says the Canterbury Home Show over the weekend saw a marked uptick in inquiries from people keen to cut their electricity and gas bills using modern, efficient technology.

“One of the most common questions we received was how much a household could save by replacing traditional hot water cylinders with high-performance hot water heat pumps,” he says. “The answer is – a lot.”

Hot water heat pumps use electricity to transfer heat rather than generate it, making them significantly more efficient than conventional electric elements. “They can reduce energy use by up to 75% for water heating,” says Dr Mardon. “That translates into thousands of dollars in savings over the life of the system, with many households able to recover the extra upfront cost in just a few years.”

Ecobulb received 60 inquiries about hot water heat pumps at the home show, triple the number of inquiries at a similar sized Canterbury home show in August.

“Based on past experience, we expect around two-thirds of those inquiries to convert into installations — so around 40 new systems from one weekend,” says Dr Mardon. “That’s promising, but with over two million households in New Zealand, we’ve only scratched the surface.”

Dr Mardon says while rising power prices are prompting more people to consider energy-efficient options, further support is needed to accelerate adoption. “We’d like to see greater investment in programmes like Warmer Kiwi Homes, which could subsidise hot water heat pumps. We also support the introduction of a Ratings Assistance Scheme to help homeowners better understand and improve the energy efficiency of their homes.”

He adds that broadening access to efficient technologies like hot water heat pumps would reduce emissions, modernise New Zealand’s residential energy systems, and lower long-term costs for Kiwi households.

“Hot water heat pumps are one of the most efficient solutions available for residential and commercial water heating,” says Dr Mardon. “They’re good for the environment—and even better for the power bill.”