pūataata
1. (noun) young of smelt, common smelt, Retropinna retropinna - slender small silvery endemic freshwater fish that move about in shoals and growing to about 165 mm long. Found throughout Aotearoa/New Zealand. Spawn in the reaches of rivers in summer and autum then dying. Lavae washed to sea, some returning with whitebait, others returning only as adults.
