A man is being treated for hypothermia in Tauranga Hospital after being plucked from Tauranga Harbour early this morning.

Mount Maunganui St John Paramedics were called to the Port of Tauranga to treat the 48-year-old Tauranga man before taking him to hospital at about 4am.

A Tauranga man was rescued from the Tauranga Harbour after being spotted in the water by a pilot boat early this morning. File photo.

A spokesperson says he was suffering from hypothermia after being in the water for about six hours.

Tauranga Police Senior Sergeant Carl Purcell says a pilot boat was heading out to meet a ship when the crew spotted the man in the water.

'While the man claims to have been in the water for that period of time, it's also believed he had been out fishing earlier in the day and come back to shore before heading out for a second fishing trip later in the night.”

Carl says the man had some drinks while on shore and took some more booze with him on his second trip.

'He also had no life jacket. He is lucky to be alive.”

How the man ended up in the water is still being investigated.