This 1500-acre body of water is owned and managed by Whakakī Lake Trust, who are dedicated to the protection and enhancement of the wetland environment.
Whakakī Lagoon is the largest and easternmost of a string of lagoons which run close to the northern cost of Hawke Bay. Other lagoons in the chain (from west to east) include Ngamotu Lagoon, Ohuia Lagoon, Wairau Lagoon, and Te Paeroa Lagoon.
In pre-European times there were a number of Māori villages strategically placed along this coastline to take advantage of the bounty of food from the sea and wetland sources.
A number of different bird species can be observed here in their natural habitat. Whakakī Lagoon provides habitat for regionally important waterfowl and wader species such as the Australasian bittern botaurus poiciloptilus and also provides habitat for the secretive marsh crake porzana pusilla and spotless crake porzana tabuensis and provides roosting for a small population of royal spoonbill platalea region found in Hawke's Bay.
Information thanks to Visit Wairoa