when sea surface temperature (SST) was higher than average. Major influxes of tropical and subtropical fishes apparently occur during warm summers, although some warm periods were not accompanied by influxes, and a few tropical and subtropical fishes arrived when SST was average or below average. The most likely upstream source of reef fish larvae is Norfolk Island, and the principal transport mechanism is probably the East Auckland Current. The discovery in north-eastern New Zealand of single individuals of Parma kermadecensis and the yellow form of Chrysiptera rapanui, both previously regarded as Kermadec Islands endemics, provides evidence for occasional larval transport from the Kermadecs to north-eastern New Zealand.