A giant mola tecta (Hoodwinker sunfish) was discovered in Fiordland's Te Puaitaha/Breaksea Sound recently by Environment Southland (ES) divers.

The Hoodwinker Sunfish, discovered and formally catalogued by New Zealand and Japanese scientists in July 2017, is considered one of the world’s largest and heaviest bony fish.

Previously only two sunfish types, Mola mola (Ocean sunfish) and Mola ramsayi (Short sunfish), had been known to exist.

Sun fish are found in temperate waters throughout the Southern Hemisphere, but are rare in the Northern Hemisphere.

They feed on plankton.

The ES divers were removing the pest seaweed Undaria, as part of a 'Jobs for Nature' programme, when they came across the giant fish.