Forest & Bird Magazine 340 May 2011 by Forest & Bird

ISSUE 340 â&#x20AC;¢ MAY 2011 www.forestandbird.org.nz

Weta warriors

PLUS Don Merton: a superhero

A pest-free garden

Sanctuaries: Fenced or free

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ISSUE 340

• May 2011

Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc. General Manager: Mike Britton Advocacy Manager: Kevin Hackwell Services Manager: Julie Watson North Island Conservation Manager: Mark Bellingham South Island Conservation Manager: Chris Todd Communications Manager: Marina Skinner Central Office: Level 1, 90 Ghuznee St, Wellington. PO Box 631, Wellington 6140. Tel: (04) 385-7374, Fax: (04) 385-7373 Email: office@forestandbird.org.nz Web: www.forestandbird.org.nz Auckland Office: 34A Charlotte Street, Eden Terrace, Auckland, PO Box 108 055, Symonds St, Auckland 1150. Tel: (09) 302 0203, Fax: (09) 303 4548 Email: n.beveridge@forestandbird.org.nz Christchurch Office: Email: c.todd@forestandbird.org.nz Forest & Bird is a registered charitable entity under the Charities Act 2005. Registration No. CC26943.

www.forestandbird.org.nz

Contents 2 Editorial 5 Soapbox 6 Letters 7 50 years ago 9 Conservation news

Amazing facts about...

In the field

One of us

Community conservation

Book reviews

30 Walking on water

Visions of Nature, Atlas of Rare Birds, The Carbon Forest, Handbook of the Birds of the World

In brief

32 Backyard conservation

3 6 68

Our people

Conservation ambassadors Sir Alan Mark, Gerry McSweeney and Craig Potton; Linda Conning, Colin Ryder, John Morton

Cover story A new breed of kakapo

26 Conservation superhero Tribute to Don Merton

New species of storm petrel discovered

ART DIRECTOR /DESIGNER:

Winning the rat race

Rob Di Leva, Dileva Design E rob@dileva.co.nz

35 Nature of tomorrow

PREPRESS/PRINTING: Kalamazoo

Westland petrel

Going places

Artificial insemination is improving the gene pool

T (04) 801-2763 E d.brooks@forestandbird.org.nz

Petrels with a fighting chance

DEPUTY EDITOR: David Brooks

Rangatahi

Rounded view of rivers

Both sides of the fence

Weta sex – fast and furious

PO Box 631, Wellington. T (04) 801-2761 F (04) 385-7373 E m.skinner@forestandbird.org.nz

Garden Bird Survey 2011

T-shirts, Matiu/Somes Island book giveaway, Quintessentially Kiwi, Mokihinui share certificate, Mackenzie tenure review, Richard Henry kakapo, Lake Matiri bats, silvereyes bounce back, Christchurch earthquake, Pacific eco-tour, Dingle Dell insect life, Waitutu 1080 success, Schedule 4 extension

EDITOR: Marina Skinner

0 4 43

Are fenced sanctuaries value for money?

Sub-Antarctic Campbell Island

Vegetable caterpillars

Moths – masters of our night skies

West Coast branch chair Kathy Gilbert

Southland’s Te Rere Penguin Reserve, Mana BioBlitz, Matuku Reserve, Napier enviroschool, North Taranaki walkway project, South Auckland’s Wairoa River

Parting shot

North Island robin by Simon Fordham

Future of pest management

Wyatt & Wilson (NZ) Ltd ADVERTISING:

Vanessa Clegg T 0275 420 337 E vanclegg@xtra.co.nz Karen Condon T 0275 420 338 E mack.cons@xtra.co.nz Membership & Circulation T 0800 200 064 F (04) 385 7373 E membership@forestandbird.org.nz

COVER SHOT A female Cook Strait giant weta, Deinacrida rugosa. Females weigh in at more than 20 grams, twice that of males. Photo: Rob Suisted/www.naturespic.com

Thanks a million A huge thank you to everyone who gave to Forest & Bird’s appeal last December, which raised $46,000 for our work protecting individual native plants and animals, including endangered black stilts (kaki), blue ducks (whio), Hochstetter’s frogs, fairy terns and Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins. Your money is already at work giving our wildlife a better chance at survival.

Forest & Bird

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editorial

Great totara in our branches I

t was with great sadness that we farewelled one of New Zealand’s greatest environmental warriors, Don Merton. This issue pays tribute to Don and the enormous contribution he made to conservation and to the lives of those who are active in the conservation movement. Don will also be remembered for being “at one” with the creatures for which he became the voice of nature. After he realised his condition was terminal, he made a pilgrimage to say his last goodbyes to the birds whose lives he helped save and who, in turn, made his own life so much more fulfilling and rewarding. Don’s death will trigger many feelings in each of us, particularly those who had the privilege of knowing and working with him. Don was a member of Forest & Bird from the age of 10, and he represents the people factor that makes Forest & Bird so important and relevant. Our organisation is made up of people inspired by a passion and by mentors like Don, a need and a desire to proactively preserve and protect our indigenous plants and animals and the natural environment they live in. We can only do that if we work together, sharing the work, responsibilities, knowledge and our collective experiences to see advocacy and hard work bring the best results possible. This is why Forest & Bird branches are so important. For many of us, our branches provide local communities with most of the benefits that are relevant to us every day – the restored riparian strip, the pest-controlled reserve, the healthier wetland and the legally protected bird nesting habitat, to give a few examples. They are the face of the organisation at community events, council hearings, reserve clean-ups, meetings with local environmental partners and planting days, the ear for the community’s environmental concerns and the muscle and labour for much of the ecological restoration, increased birdlife and reduced pests that bring joy to communities. I stand in awe of what Forest & Bird branches achieve and I stand in awe of the people behind branch efforts. I pay tribute to our branches and the tireless members and supporters who bring Forest & Bird’s mission to the daily lives of communities and the future generations of people within them. Our branches and our people doing grass-roots conservation in our local communities are what set us apart from other conservation and environment groups. It is what we should be most proud of, what we should foster and strengthen into an even stronger voice for nature. Hei konä mai i roto i ngä mihi

Forest & Bird conservation conference The theme of this year’s conference is Freshwater for Life, with expert and inspirational speakers, panel discussions and workshops. It is at the Mercure Hotel, 355 Willis Street, Wellington, opening on Friday evening, 24 June, and running until Sunday, 26 June. The Annual General Meeting will be at 8.30am on 25 June. The conference is open to all Forest & Bird members and everyone interested in freshwater and conservation. More information at executive.officer@ forestandbird.org.nz, 04 385 7374 or on our website www.forestandbird.org.nz Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc. (Founded 1923) Registered Office at Level One, 90 Ghuznee Street, Wellington. PATRON: His Excellency the Hon.

Sir Anand Satyanand, GovernorGeneral of New Zealand NATIONAL PRESIDENT:

Barry Wards DEPUTY PRESIDENT:

Andrew Cutler NATIONAL TREASURER:

Graham Bellamy CONSERVATION AMBASSADORS:

Barry Wards Forest & Bird President

Sir Alan Mark, Gerry McSweeney, Craig Potton. EXECUTIVE COUNCILLORS:

Lindsey Britton, Mark Hanger, Alan Hemmings, Peter Maddison, Craig Potton, Ines Stager, Jon Wenham. DISTINGUISHED LIFE MEMBERS:

Forest & Bird is published quarterly by the Royal Forest & Bird Protection Society. Forest & Bird is a member of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and is the New Zealand Partner of BirdLife International. Opinions expressed by contributors in the magazine are not necessarily those of Forest & Bird. Forest & Bird is printed on chlorine-free paper made from wood fibre sourced from sustainably managed forests. The magazine is bulk mailed in biodegradable cellulose film, which is made from wood pulp sourced from managed plantations. *Registered at PO Headquarters, Wellington, as a magazine. ISSN 0015-7384. Copyright. All rights reserved.

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Bill Ballantine, Stan Butcher, Ken Catt, Audrey Eagle, Alan Edmonds, Gordon Ell, Stewart Gray, Philip Hart, Joan Leckie, Hon. Sandra Lee-Vercoe, Peter Maddison, Sir Alan Mark, Gerry McSweeney, Margaret Peace, Guy Salmon, Lesley Shand, Gordon Stephenson, David Underwood.

Join as a regular donor and help us help nature

Peter Langlands

Nature’s future is in your hands. Become a Forest & Bird regular donor and help secure the future of New Zealand’s unique wildlife. With so many of New Zealand’s unique native animals, plants and habitats still threatened or at risk we need your support to give them hope for the future. Through our regular giving programme your contribution will help fund conservation work to help protect our country’s flora and fauna for you and future generations to enjoy. Join our regular giving programme for as little as $25 a month (minimum) and you will receive complimentary membership of Forest & Bird including our acclaimed Forest & Bird quarterly magazine as well as many other benefits. Please will you help Forest & Bird protect our unique wildlife and habitats?

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soapbox

Working toward a bright green future In election year, Mark Bellingham ponders the direction in which New Zealand is heading.

ith an election just months away and plans being made to rebuild Christchurch after the devastating earthquakes, the time is ripe to think hard about the kind of future we want for our country. Will we continue to be trapped in the past as world leaders in species extinctions, biodiversity decline, growing greenhouse gas emissions and empty green rhetoric? Or will we embrace the future and grasp the opportunity to build healthy communities and a strong economy based on sustaining our natural resources and our native plants and animals? One thing is certain: if we continue to destroy our natural environment, we will be condemning ourselves as well. Nowhere is this clearer than in New Zealand where our living from agriculture, horticulture and tourism depends on clean air, clear water, healthy soils and biodiversity. Our areas of greatest biodiversity are mainly in the lowlands, but these have been severely degraded and fragmented over most of the country. Rampant rural and urban land development is wrecking the last few fragments of nature in many places. Central and regional government rules allow dairy farmers to divert clean water for irrigation and return polluted water to rivers and groundwater. Where is the place for black stilts, wrybills or native fish in this world of unchecked development? No council has yet translated the biodiversity imperative in the Resource Management Act into effective plan rules and incentives to protect the natural variety of life. Remaining lowland habitats survive as isolated islands in a sea of intensively used farmlands or urban areas. Many of the species in these refuges cannot shift between habitats, condemning them to inevitable decline. We are on the cusp of a new extinction wave in New Zealand, possibly led by the Mt Augustus giant snail, which was removed from its mountaintop home on the West Coast to make way for a Solid Energy coal mine. The NZ Transport Agency is indulging the government’s passion for new roads with routes through native forests, wetlands and even an Auckland marine reserve. These are cheaper options for the agency than building through farms, or housing and industrial areas. The dairy industry, mining companies, and state-owned enterprises such as Solid Energy, Landcorp, Meridian Energy and Genesis Energy appear unable to leave behind last century’s unsustainable business model. They are abetted by government agencies such as the Ministry of Economic Development, Treasury and the NZ Transport Agency. Despite all this, there are glimmers of new thinking to point the way ahead. Several industries and major companies recognise that unsustainable practices have no future and the need to maintain our natural landscapes. Some of our partners in the NZ Forests Accord

actively manage ecological reserves within their pine plantations. Ecological sustainability is being taken up by several wine producers, and kiwifruit company Zespri is investigating ecologically sustainable production systems for its growers. Sustainability has been the cornerstone for a significant – and growing – section of the tourism industry for several years. With its 100% Pure slogan, no other industry depends so much on maintaining our natural landscapes and biodiversity. The introduction of more sustainable fishing in our surrounding seas has resulted in some fisheries starting to recover from over-exploitation. The introduction of more marine reserves or rahui tapu – fishing bans imposed by iwi managers – would also contribute to the health of our marine environment. Our marine life is still there – albeit in low numbers – and it can recover once fishing pressure eases. We are at the crossroads in deciding New Zealand’s future. The new government in November could chart a new course but it will require courage and vision to grasp the opportunity. The rebuilding of Christchurch could exemplify this new vision, creating a more energy and transportefficient city, one that is more liveable both for people and for nature. Rebuilding Christchurch could be partly funded by cancelling some of the unsustainable roading projects around New Zealand, such as the “Holiday Highway” from Warkworth to Whangarei. A new Christchurch could be where we start to rebuild New Zealand as an ecologically sustainable nation. Mark Bellingham is Forest & Bird’s North Island Conservation Manager. Forest & Bird

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letters Forest & Bird welcomes readers’ letters on conservation topics. Letters should be no longer than 200 words and must include the writer’s full name, home address and daytime phone number. We don’t always have space to publish all letters or publish them in full. The best contribution to the Letters page of the August 2011 issue will win a copy of Best Short Nature Walks in New Zealand by Peter Janssen (New Holland, $34.99). Please send letters to Editor, Forest & Bird magazine, PO Box 631, Wellington 6140 or e-mail m.skinner@forestandbird.org.nz by June 18.

Kereru flock to Whenuakite The photo shows one group of kereru – part of 76 grazing at Whenuakite, on the Coromandel Peninsula, where pest control has been in place for 10 years. It shows how our native birds will respond when given a chance. The Whenuakite Kiwi Care Group was set up in 2000 to promote the welfare of kiwi and their habitat in this area. Spread over about 4000 hectares of land, it contains the largest protected area of lowland coastal forest on the East Coast between Whitianga and Wellington. In a 2001 kiwi call survey, 29 kiwi were identified. This increased to 68 in a repeat survey in 2005, and 98 by 2010. Kaka, tui and kereru numbers have increased dramatically. A total of 460 traps spread over 50 kilometres of traplines are checked monthly, half by volunteers and half by a paid contractor. To date, 1155 stoats have been caught as well as 124 weasels, 12 ferrets and 249 feral cats. Aerial 1080 was applied to 1500 hectares in 2006 and 2009, targeting rats and possums. Arthur Hinds, Whitianga This letter is the winner of Wild New Zealand from the Road by Gordon Ell.

Mokihinui memories I have fond memories of the beauty and excitement of the walks I made in the Mokihinui gorge between 1971 and 1976. On two occasions I got there by different routes from Murchison via the Matiri River and Larrikin Creek. I found the track down the Mokihinui hairy when tired and carrying a heavy pack. At one point the track is very narrow around a tight gully with a steep drop to the gorge below. Once I was surprised to see a dead stag lodged 8

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part way down this gully below the track. I could only think that it had found the track too narrow to negotiate, with its antlers brushing the cliff at the side of the track, and had fallen off. The stag wouldn’t have been there because it had been shot, because there was no vegetation to browse, which would have caused it to stop there and be a target. I see New Zealand’s ever-growing population and resultant increasing need of electricity to service it as the reason why power companies want to build more dams. I think we should try to control our population growth as soon as possible, so more dams aren’t needed. Stephen Conn, Nelson

Alarm at GE pines There is a new threat to our biosecurity, the environment and sustainable forestry in New Zealand – an ERMAapproved GE experiment involving 4000 GE pine trees at secret locations at Scion’s property at Rotorua. Northland Regional Council chairman Craig Brown commented: “As far as I’m concerned, this flies in the face of reason, especially given the inherent difficulty of containing the GE pine pollen. Based on Scion’s past practices, inevitable human error or sloppiness, and the unpredictability of GE organisms, the risk of transgenic contamination is high and a compelling reason for ERMA to have declined the application. “In addition to environmental/biosecurity concerns, this GE experiment is a direct threat to New Zealand forests certified by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). The FSC prohibits the use of all GMOs in FSC certified forests. “Environment Bay of Plenty (Regional Council) made a submission to ERMA stressing serious concerns about this particular GE application by Scion and noting the precautionary GE policy put forward by Bay of Plenty Regional Council in its draft Regional Policy Statement.” It is an alarming development that crown research institutes such as Scion and AgResearch have begun to apply for both GE field trials and conditional release of transgenic animals (in the case of AgResearch) to undisclosed locations in the North Island. Forest & Bird has had a strong precautionary GE policy since 2003 – let us rally together to stop secret plantings of GE pines. Zelka Grammer, Whangarei

Mokihinui protection From what I understand, the Mokihinui River is in a national park and is protected for us and our children forever. End of story. Wally Kolff, Christchurch Forest & Bird Top of the South Field Officer Debs Martin replies: Sadly, Wally is wrong about the protection given to the Mokihinui. It was considered very early on for inclusion in Kahurangi National Park, but it was left out for political reasons. The Timberlands review of indigenous logging on the West Coast then recommended the area become part of a conservation park. That process stalled four years ago – probably for fear of expensive legal action by Meridian. Unfortunately, protecting our public conservation land is a gruelling process, and too often development interests can override the public and conservation benefits. I hope Wally’s statement becomes true one day.

Magazine wrappers Forest & Bird magazine used to arrive in cellophane made from wood fibre but the latest one came in plastic. This is called biodegradable film but is made from oil. Furthermore, its degradation releases fossil carbon, which is of concern to those who accept the theory of anthropogenic climate change. Please send no further magazines until or unless you restore a cellophane or paper wrapper. John Rhodes, Greytown We appreciate your feedback, and agree with your sentiments. Our mailing house had trouble finding a nonpetrochemical-based film that would work in its machines. For this May issue – and all future issues - we have returned to biodegradable cellulose film, which is made from wood pulp sourced from managed plantations. – Editor

50 years ago

Down to earth

Pamela Robinson

Thank you to Ann Graeme (and her illustrators) for the many wonderful articles over the years. The article “Digging the dirt on dirt” (February Forest & Bird) was absolutely what students need to know. When talking to local pupils about how trees protect the soil, the facts about micro-organisms eating the litter and each other and their poo again and again until there is nothing left to eat so minerals “fall” into the soil really got them thinking. They all knew about calcium as a mineral so to think that those tiny creatures that we observed (or couldn’t see) were so important in letting go of minerals that we needed to survive presented a new twist on life. Standing under the trees, looking at the layers above, thinking about the leaves making sugar food and then looking at the litter and understanding how minerals were being given back to the soil for us by such tiny creatures was very revealing to them. Long may Ann continue her quality work. Bev Woods, Ruakaka

Tuis in your garden There seems no doubt that the tui is holding its own and that when suitably encouraged it will visit suburban gardens. Reference to tuis in Wellington gardens has been made previously in Forest & Bird, but last January the Wellington Evening Post published an account of how some of these friendly and fascinating birds daily visit the home of Mr. and Mrs. H. A. Gilbert of Karori, Wellington, for their sugar water. Perhaps they were originally attracted by the kowhai and pohutukawa trees in the garden, but they find the sugar water so much to their liking that they allow Mrs. Gilbert to approach within two feet of them. The Gilberts are well rewarded for planting trees that produce nectar and for putting out sugar water, for they derive much pleasure from watching the birds and listening to their songs. Forest & Bird, February 1961

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letters Our advertisers

Lead a skink to water

Shame on you for lowering the standard of the Forest & Bird magazine. While one can readily understand that advertising is a necessary way of life to finance a magazine, I find it very distasteful to see car companies and wine companies advertising in this magazine. Will you next be promoting car engine oil for petrol companies and beer for supermarkets? Why only Honda adverts? Toyota will certainly want to be there, too, and maybe others. Much “greener” adverts would be promoting tramping and walking gear and outdoor clothing, travel companies and adventure tourism, garden furniture, glasshouses, bicycles and kayaking to name a few. Please do consider the type of advertising and keep our magazine true to the cause.

I was inspired by Jan Kelly’s “Lounging with lizards” article (November Forest & Bird). We, too, have lizards in our farm landscape beyond the garden, and I have seen both common skinks and a gecko in the garden. I am now planning to create a “lizard nirvana” based on the ideas in Jan’s article. One concept is very curious and has me puzzled: water. Lizards here live in or close to dry rocky screes and on dry rocky bluffs, or among the rough bark of old-man pine trees, nowhere near water. Do I need to provide water in the garden for them to hang around?

Graham Glover, Katikati

Susan King, Marlborough

We are very careful about the advertising company we keep, and we are very grateful for the support we get from our loyal advertisers. Their money allows even more of our members’ contributions to go towards Forest & Bird’s conservation work. Honda is a significant partner with Forest & Bird, and has provided fuel-efficient Civic hybrid cars to our field officers for almost four years. We are very thankful for Honda’s generous contributions and we encourage members to support our advertisers – all of whom are supporting Forest & Bird. – Editor

Lizard researcher and Greater Wellington Regional Council environmental educator Richard Romijn replies: The short answer is no, it’s not essential to supply drinking water for lizards. Lizards get the water they need from prey and moisture drops on vegetation. Lizard experts Tony Whitaker and Rod Hitchmough have seen lizards in the wild drinking moisture (water droplets) from vegetation. Much of the mainland habitat where lizards are found in abundance is very dry and does not have standing water.

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conservation

news

Tree tee S

how you’re a member of Forest & Bird in our own good-quality, cotton T-shirts. Available in white in cuts for men and women, and in green for men. $40 including postage and packaging.

Order from Forest & Bird’s shop at www.forestandbird.org.nz or 0800 200 064.

Forest & Bird has been protecting and restoring

1923

New Zealand’s natural environment since...

Quintessentially Kiwi The Department of Conservation wants to know what we think are our most special native species and special places. As part of DOC’s work identifying conservation priorities for the next decade, it is asking the public for feedback. This will lead to conservation management strategies (CMS) across the country. Have your say here: http://tiny.cc/6a21g

PHOTO: KEVIN COATE

Win a Matiu/ Somes book F

orest & Bird’s Lower Hutt branch in late March launched a book celebrating 30 years of restoration on Matiu/Somes Island in the middle of Wellington Harbour. A New Cloak for Matiu: The restoration of an island ecology by Janet Hector tells the story of the inspired plan branch members had to replant the island and rid it of pests – and their hard work to achieve their goals. The book is $25 (including postage and packaging). Order from Forest & Bird’s shop at www.forestandbird.org.nz or 0800 200 064. We have five copies to give away to Forest & Bird readers. To enter the draw, please put your name and address on the back of an envelope and post to Matiu/Somes draw Forest & Bird PO Box 631 Wellington 6140 Or email your entry to draw@forestandbird.org.nz Please put Matiu/Somes in the subject line and include your name and address in the email. Entries close on June 30.

Nature Tours Australia and beyond!

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Western Australia’s Abrolhos Islands; Western Australia’s Kimberley Discovery; Western Australia’s Western Explorer Wildflowers; Australia’s Anne Beadell Highway Expedition; Central America’s Costa Rica Wildlife Safari; Moroccan Colours, Culture & Wildlife Safari.

For full details of our 2011 program contact:

COATES WILDLIFE TOURS

Phone: (61 8) 9330 6066 Web: www.coateswildlifetours.com.au Email: coates@iinet.net.au

GSA Coates Tours Licence no 9ta1135/36

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conservation

news

Fair share of the Mokihinui F

orest & Bird’s Save the Mokihinui campaign has this year been focused on pressuring Meridian Energy to abandon its plan to dam the pristine West Coast river and preparing to fight the proposal in the Environment Court. The Environment Court hearing to appeal the resource consents granted to Meridian last year is scheduled for early next year, but already we have engaged experts who have been in the Mokihinui Gorge and surrounding forests gathering evidence for our case. The court hearing is our chance to persuade the judges that the Mokihinui deserves to be protected from this destructive development. To ensure victory, we need to deliver a powerful case, supported by respected experts. Branches are being asked to raise as much money as possible for the campaign so we can take advantage of a generous offer from the T-Gear Trust to match dollar-for-dollar the funds raised by branches. We are also asking other supporters to help us save the Mokihinui by buying a limited-edition share certificate for $100. Illustrator Kieran Rynhart has created a beautiful certificate which adapts a similar appeal in the Save Manapouri campaign four decades ago. The share certificate, which can be bought by going to the Forest & Bird website or contacting our national office, incorporates many of the natural treasures of the Mokihinui. These include the steep granite gorges, endangered Olearia cheesemannii tree daisy, longfin eel, land snail Powelliphanta lignaria unicolorata, flowering rata and great spotted kiwi. We have also been asking supporters of the Mokihinui and our wild rivers to send an e-card to publicly owned Meridian, challenging the company to live up to its stated

environmentally friendly ideals by leaving the river in its natural state. A giant-sized postcard version of the e-card was delivered by Forest & Bird representatives, MPs and other organisations to Meridian’s Wellington head office on February 2 to kick off the e-card campaign, which finished at the end of April.

Forest & Bird was joined at the launch by MPs, including Labour’s Chris Hipkins, Peter Dunne of United Future and the Greens’ Kevin Hague, and representatives of kayakers, rafters and trampers, who also want the river to remain in its natural state. Meridian’s proposed dam would create a 14-kilometrelong reservoir covering 330 hectares of rainforest and riverbed along the Mokihinui River gorge in what would be New Zealand’s largest ever drowning of conservation land by a hydro project. The dam would threaten more than 20 endangered species, including the blue duck or whio, as well as at least two unique species of giant land snails, the critically endangered long-tailed bat and longfin eels and other native fish. n David Brooks

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Mackenzie tenure review undermines forum F

orest & Bird is opposing plans to freehold most of two pastoral lease properties in the heart of the Mackenzie Country as a collaborative process gets underway to look at land use conflicts in the region. Just before Christmas, Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) released proposals for The Wolds and Maryburn stations, which would result in the freeholding of threequarters of 16,400 hectares of pastoral leasehold land, with the remaining 4200ha to be added to the conservation estate. Forest & Bird believes the tenure review of the two properties should have been suspended to avoid preempting consideration of the future management of the region by the government-backed Mackenzie Sustainable Futures Trust. The trust is being set up following the Future of the Mackenzie Country Symposium held in Twizel in late November, where agreement was reached on trying to find a collaborative approach to managing and protecting one of our iconic landscapes. An initial meeting of the parties expected to join the trust – including Forest & Bird – was held in February. Freeholding of pastoral leases in the region is leading to the introduction of irrigation, intensive agriculture such as dairying and other inappropriate developments in the tussock landscape. Forest & Bird has proposed setting up a drylands park in part of the Mackenzie Country to ensure some of the most valuable landscapes and habitats are preserved for future generations. In our submissions on the two tenure review proposals, we said both were contrary to the Crown Pastoral Land Act (CPLA) and should be withdrawn. Under the preIiminary proposals, 7176ha of The Wolds would be freeholded, with 760ha being added to the conservation estate. At Maryburn, 3430ha of land would be in public ownership, and 4946ha would be freeholded.

A massive pivot irrigator beside SH8 between Twizel and Omarama. Photo: Peter Scott

We also argued that another 1880 hectares at The Wolds recommended for protection by the Department of Conservation should be publicly owned, rather than being freeholded under the proposal. At Maryburn, sizeable areas that DOC identified as deserving protection have been proposed for freeholding. “Very few opportunities remain in New Zealand to protect relatively intact sequences of dryland environments and biodiversity at an ecologically sustainable scale. Maryburn in the central Mackenzie Basin is part of one of the only areas in the basin where it is possible to do this,” our submission said. Forest & Bird has also appealed two decisions on the Waitaki District Plan relating to the region. One of these makes irrigation for pastoral and crop production a permitted activity throughout the district’s rural scenic zone, which includes much of the Upper Waitaki. This means that once irrigators have got water permits from the regional council, they do not need to seek consent from the district council for the land use aspects of irrigation. Forest & Bird wants irrigation to be a discretionary activity, requiring resource consent from the district council to ensure land use effects, especially on the landscape, can be assessed. The other decision provides that the Waitaki District Plan’s rules controlling clearance of indigenous vegetation do not apply to properties that have been freeholded through (LINZ) tenure review. The council contends that the tenure review process adequately identifies and protects indigenous vegetation. There is evidence that LINZ relies on district plans to protect ecological values on freeholded land but the council is relying on LINZ to do the same, resulting in a protection vacuum. n David Brooks Forest & Bird

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conservation

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End of a kakapo era C

hristmas Eve this year was a sad day for kakapo kind. The elder statesman of the kakapo clan, the venerable Richard Henry, breathed his last breath, and was found resting peacefully on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island. Richard Henry was the last remaining kakapo from the Fiordland population, rediscovered in the 1970s after fears that the kakapo had become extinct. Soon after, a population was found on Stewart Island which included crucial females, and the kakapo’s future was once again an option. Richard Henry was named for his better-known namesake, the Irishman who had the foresight to move more than 600 kakapo and kiwi to offshore islands during his time as a ranger in Fiordland. The original Richard Henry’s work was initially undone due to a stoat invasion on the refuge island, but the lessons he taught us about protecting species such as kakapo on predator-free islands have shaped conservation in New Zealand. Richard Henry II was crucial to the breeding population of kakapo because of his Fiordland genetic variety. His two sons, Sinbad and Gulliver, have continued to keep his legacy alive, both fathering chicks this season. Richard Henry was discovered high in the misty mountains of Fiordland in 1975. Scientists estimate he

could have hatched in the 1930s, which was when kakapo were last relatively common in Fiordland. That means the venerable patriarch could have been at least 80 years old when he died. n Nicola Vallance

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Long-tailed bats have recently been found beside Lake Matiri, which has been targeted for a hydro scheme. Photo: Debs Martin

Lake’s precious bats S

outh Island long-tailed bats are known to be in serious decline. Experts predict that, with the current level of knowledge and expertise, long-tailed bats in the South Island will decrease by more than 90 per cent within three generations. This is one reason that they have the highest threat classification of “nationally critical”. Forest & Bird’s top of the South Island surveys have shown dramatic declines in recent decades, and robust populations are hard to find, with only two confirmed. Forest & Bird Bat Surveys Co-ordinator Dr Brian Lloyd was delighted to then find a population of long-tailed bats beside Lake Matiri, near Murchison, and below the outlet on the Matiri River – within conservation land. Formed about 400 years ago by a huge landslide, Lake Matiri is an ideal place for long-tailed bats, with large open freshwater areas for foraging insects on the wing and large red beech trees for roosting, and at the right altitude. Unfortunately, unlike the surrounding area, Lake Matiri and the lower river were not included in Kahurangi National Park because of historic desires to place a hydro scheme on the river. With resource consents now granted, the Department of Conservation is considering a concession application. Coincidentally, Brian identified that the area (given past records) could be an ideal site for bats, and put out detection boxes in January this year. The results were very exciting, with bat detections at all sites, and significant numbers around the edge of the lake. Generating hydro-electricity from the lake would involve the removal of a number of trees on the proposed penstock route, create a fluctuating lake level and increase overall disturbance in the area. Forest & Bird has always maintained that Lake Matiri is an inappropriate site for a hydro-electricity scheme given its status as a wildlife refuge, a water conservation order protecting its freshwater values, and its location within lowland podocarp forest at the southern entrance to Kahurangi National Park. The added discovery of bats in the area only increases our resolve to save this special place and provide the appropriate protection it needs. Forest & Bird Field Officer Debs Martin and Brian made strong submissions at a hearing in Murchison in February. The discovery of bats in the area makes this a site of international importance – and with so much at stake, we urged the Minister of Conservation’s delegate to decline the scheme. The final decision is expected soon, and Forest & Bird will consider options once the Minister’s decision is released.

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A long-tailed bat. Photo: JL Kendrick/DOC

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conservation

news

Silvereyes bounce back A

fter being in second place for the previous two years, silvereyes returned to the top of the table as the species counted in greatest numbers in New Zealand gardens in 2010. The total number of all birds of all species counted was 187,858 from 4193 gardens (which represents an average of nearly 45 birds per garden). The total number of silvereyes counted was 55,543 (an average of 13.2 per garden). House sparrows were second (52,779 counted), starlings third (11,837), and blackbirds fourth (11,156). These species have been the top four in all four years of the survey. As in previous years, the only other native species apart from the silvereye to make the top 10 were tui and fantail.

Top 10 species (average birds per garden) 2009 House sparrow

2010 Silvereye

13.2

Silvereye

12.1 6.3

House sparrow

12.6

Starling

3.3

Starling

2.8

Blackbird

2.7

Blackbird

2.7

Tui

1.4

Chaffinch

1.2

Myna

1.0

Greenfinch

1.2

Fantail

1.0

Tui

1.2

Chaffinch

0.9

Fantail

1.0

Song thrush

0.9

Goldfinch

1.0

Goldfinch

0.8

Song thrush

0.8

However, the results varied in different regions of the country. For example, the silvereye was the species counted in greatest numbers in Canterbury, Otago, and Southland but the house sparrow was the species counted in greatest numbers in all other regions. The myna did not make the top 10 nationally this year but was the third most commonly counted species (behind house sparrows and silvereyes) in Auckland and Northland.

For example, most survey returns (30%) came from Canterbury (which has 14% of New Zealand households), 17% came from Otago (5% of households), 13% from Wellington (12% of households), and only 11% from Auckland (30% of households). Assuming the percentage of gardens in each region was roughly proportional to the percentage of households in each region, Canterbury and Otago gardens were over-represented and Auckland gardens under-represented in the national average counts of each species. When regional average counts were weighted by the proportion of households in each region to obtain a weighted national average count, the house sparrow (weighted average 14.2 per garden) became the most numerous and the silvereye (9.1 per garden) the secondmost numerous species counted nationally. This was because house sparrow counts were higher than silvereye counts in most regions of the country, including the largest region, Auckland, which contributed most to the weighted national average. The silvereye has recovered from the low numbers counted in 2008 and 2009, which was possibly caused by an outbreak of avian pox. Dr Spurr says other factors that affected the number of birds counted were whether the garden was urban or rural and whether or not survey participants put out supplementary food such as bread, bird seed and sugar water. More than 4000 people took part in the survey, about twice as many as in previous years. It is hoped that even more people will participate this year. The data collected will provide us with a picture of how both native and introduced birds are faring in our gardens. The next Garden Bird Survey will be held between 25 June and 3 July this year. See page 40 for this year’s survey form. More information at www.landcareresearch.co.nz/ research/biocons/gardenbird/

Top 10 species in different regions of the country in 2010 Auckland

Wellington

Canterbury

Otago

House sparrow

Silvereye

House sparrow

Myna

Starling

Blackbird

Starling

Tui

Greenfinch

Tui

Chaffinch

Fantail

Greenfinch

Goldfinch

Greenfinch

Song thrush

Fantail

Dunnock

Goldfinch

Song thrush

Fantail

Chaffinch

Song thrush

Fantail

Song thrush

Survey organiser Eric Spurr said that because of regional variation, the total number of birds of each species counted nationally was influenced by the number of survey returns received from different regions of the country. “What makes matters more difficult is that the number of survey returns received from each region was not in proportion to the number of households in each region, as determined by Statistics New Zealand.” 16

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Silvereyes are number one again in New Zealand gardens. Photo: Jackie Whitehead

Hard times in Christchurch F

orest & Bird sends our best wishes all our Christchurch members after the devastating February 22 earthquake. We know that some members and supporters suffered losses of family members and friends, serious injury and significant damage to their homes and workplaces. Forest & Bird’s Christchurch staff are back together under one roof after months of disruption caused by the series of earthquakes. The four staff, a volunteer and an intern have moved into the bottom storey of a house in Merivale on a two-month lease, thanks to an offer from Forest & Bird members Michael and Annette Hamblett. “Moving into the house means we can function again as a team because it’s been very difficult for staff just working off their kitchen tables,” South Island Conservation Manager Chris Todd says. Forest & Bird’s Kenton Chambers offices in the central business district were closed for more than two months in the wake of the September 4 quake last year and again after the Boxing Day aftershock. The building suffered further serious damage in the February quake. New offices had been found in Kilmore Street earlier in February but the area – near the collapsed Pyne Gould Building – was sealed off after the last quake. Kenton Chambers is scheduled for demolition and it is unlikely that any equipment or other property can be recovered from it. A Forest & Bird car, along with a staff member’s personal car, remain stuck in a CBD parking building. Chris and the other staff were very grateful to members for support, and offers and ideas for temporary accommodation.

Eco-holiday in Vanuatu Enjoy a mid-winter Pacific holiday and help nature and Vanuatu locals by joining an eco-tour to Vatthe. The small-group tour, led by Forest & Bird field officer Sue Maturin, is from July 3-16. For several years, Sue has led the tours, which have helped the local Matantas landowners control a rampant convolvulus vine, known as big leaf, in native forest on the island of Espiritu Santo. As well as conservation work, tour members will get to explore Vatthe’s tropical forest, snorkel and swim, and get to experience island life. For more information: Sue Maturin, 03 477 9677, s.maturin@forestandbird.org.nz

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conservation

news

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a small world Nicholas Martinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s discoveries in a small Auckland reserve got him thinking about the best ways to protect our 20,000 native insects.

ingle Dell is a small, coastal forest remnant in the east Auckland suburb of St Heliers. An important tree in this forest is Pseudopanax lessonii, also called houpara, which is closely related to lancewood. The discovery of its remarkable insects in this reserve led me to some practical thoughts about how to protect and enhance our native biodiversity. Some of the herbivores living on P. lessonii can be recognised by their appearance and damage done to the plant. These include the sixpenny scale (Ctenochiton viridis), the lancewood psyllid (Trioza panacis), and two moths, the lancewood leaf miner (Acrocercops panacivagans), the pseudopanax stem miner (Acrocercops panacicorticis) and an unnamed leaf-mining weevil. The sixpenny scale may be found on many different kinds of shrubs and trees and is widespread. The pseudopanax stem miner is found on several species of Pseudopanax and is also widespread. It is not often seen, though it is very common in Dingle Dell, and the leaf-mining weevil is known from only three places around Auckland. The only species not in Dingle Dell is the lancewood leaf miner, though it is in other reserves in Auckland city. Pseudopanax lessonii is commonly planted in parks and gardens yet all these insects except for the psyllid are largely restricted to original native habitats. Similar patterns of distribution can be seen for herbivores on other native plants. Why do some native herbivores stay in their original native habitats and others readily colonise plants in gardens, parks and newly created native habitats? Three factors come to mind: microclimate, soil conditions and poor ability to disperse.

A lancewood leaf miner on a Pseudopanax lessonii leaf.

Female sixpenny scale cause leaf dimples. Photos: Nicholas Martin

Mature female scale on the underside of a leaf.

The microclimate of a forest, even a small remnant, is more humid and cooler than most parks and gardens. The windier, hotter and drier conditions around native plants in parks and gardens may be unsuitable for some native insects. Some insects have soil-dwelling stages, and soil and litter conditions in gardens and parks are often harsher and less suitable than the soft friable soil covered in moist litter in the forest. The ability of herbivores to disperse and colonise new plants is obviously important. Some insects are small and weak fliers and are not able to make controlled flight across unsuitable terrain. Other invertebrates and some insects cannot fly, and these must walk or are blown by the wind. Young sixpenny scale insects and herbivorous mites, for example, use aerial dispersal. Many soil and litter-dwelling flightless insects, snails and earthworms must walk or creep over the ground, or sometimes get help when they are on logs or soil washed down river. Some native herbivores have successfully spread into newly created habitats. Native plants in gardens and parks will help those species that can survive outside native ecosystems and will contribute to supporting our biodiversity. However, most native insects are only found in native ecosystems. Should we create new native ecosystems or enhance existing remnants of original native ecosystems? Ideally we should do both, but if resources are limited, my recommendation is to protect, enhance and expand existing native ecosystems. Nicholas Martin is an entomologist at Plant & Food Research. For more information about insects, see http://nzacfactsheets.landcareresearch.co.nz/Index.html

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Kokako - image c/o Simon Fordham/Naturepix 18

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Waitutu bounces back F

or the first time in decades, kaka, kereru, kakariki and other wildlife in southern Fiordland’s Waitutu Forest will be able to breed without the threat of being eaten by possums, stoats or rats. Flowering mistletoe, too, will regenerate, and once more provide important food for kaka and other forest birds. It is all thanks to a successful aerial 1080 drop over 25,000 hectares of this ancient forest. The Department of Conservation carried out the successful drop last October, with the support of the Waitutu SILNA landowners (on land allocated to Maori under the South Island Landless Natives Act 1906), and boosted by $500,000 from government funds to protect the SILNA Waitutu lands. Cereal pellets containing 0.15 per cent 1080 were applied at an average of two kilograms a hectare at a cost of $23.65 a hectare. This decimated the possums, stoats and rats. The abundance of possums dropped from a rate of 9-20 per cent residual trap catch index (RTC) to 0.06 per cent after the 1080 operation. DOC’s target was less than 3 percent RTC, which is the level required for mistletoe to recover. Only one possum was found in the whole 25,000ha. A 450ha area around Waitutu lodge, beside Wairaurahiri River, was trapped. This cost almost twice as much as the aerial drop ($40.62 a hectare) and achieved less than half as good a result (2.2 per cent RTC). Three live possums were found after the operation. This rate is good enough for mistletoe to recover but the trapping would not have got the rats and stoats, and more possums have survived than in the poisoning operation. Monitoring found all 15 monitored kaka were successfully breeding. Ten of the 11 ruru (morepork) fitted with radio transmitters before the drop were alive. One was found dead just after the drop but no traces of 1080 were detected. One tui was found dead but had no traces of 1080. DOC biodiversity ranger Colin Bishop has visited Waitutu three times since the poison drop, and he says the results have been fantastic. “We saw family groups of robins and fantails – something that has rarely been seen in Waitutu.

Kereru are also doing well.” Stoats and possums are responsible for the very high death rates of female kaka and their chicks in Waitutu. The aerial drop should mean that kaka and other wildlife will get one very good, and even two, breeding seasons before stoats return. Possum numbers should remain low for much longer. Across the Waitutu River outside the control area, stoats are tracking Waitutu kaka fledglings in their tree hollow nest. Photo: DOC at 50 per cent, and they will continue to ravage the kaka and all the other wildlife. DOC can only afford to do ongoing stoat control over 4000ha in Waitutu, enough to protect 10 known kaka breeding pairs. Approval has been given to do some possum control in 1300ha across the Waitutu River to protect the struggling but once spectacular mistletoes. Possums have until recently been in low numbers here but last year they suddenly jumped, and in one year decimated one of the largest mistletoes, the scarlet mistletoe Peraxilla colensoi. Forest & Bird’s Southland Branch celebrated the longawaited drop by delivering a letter to DOC in October on behalf of the Waitutu kaka, mohua, kakariki, mistletoe and other native plants, birds, bats and insects. Thousands of people campaigned for these magnificent forests more than 20 years ago and this is the first effective pest control operation, despite growing concerns for the plight of wildlife and mistletoe. It’s taken a long time to get effective pest control over a significant area. We need to make sure that Waitutu never gets neglected again. n Sue Maturin

Expand Schedule 4 protection F

orest & Bird appeared before Parliament’s Local Government and Environment Committee last month to argue that Schedule 4 protection should be expanded to more categories of core conservation areas. We proposed four additional categories for addition to the schedule of the Crown Minerals Act listing areas offlimits for mining: ecological areas, national reserves, world heritage areas and marine mammal sanctuaries. An 1800-person Forest & Bird Facebook petition during last year’s intense Schedule 4 mining debate was the catalyst for the submission presented by Conservation Advocate Quentin Duthie. That debate highlighted that some valuable areas were intended to have the schedule’s

protection but this had never happened. The parliamentary committee rejected Forest & Bird’s request that these categories be included in a forthcoming Crown Minerals Act amendment bill so the public can have a say, but the Labour and Green parties issued a minority report supporting the additions.

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our people

Conservation Ambassadors Forest & Bird has appointed three outstanding conservationists as Conservation Ambassadors for the organisation. Sir Alan Mark, Craig Potton and Gerry McSweeney have between them devoted about 120 years to protecting New Zealand’s natural heritage. All have made major contributions to Forest & Bird. They will be speaking on behalf of Forest & Bird at forums and events as significant voices for nature, and we will profile each in coming issues of Forest & Bird magazine.

SIR ALAN MARK has spent a lifetime researching New Zealand’s native plants and working to preserve our wild places. He is a former Forest & Bird President and, as a Distinguished Life Member, he holds Forest & Bird’s top honour. The Emeritus Professor of Botany at Otago University spent his academic years studying snow tussock grasslands, their sustainable management and their environmental value. Sir Alan was a notable campaigner in the Save Manapouri movement of the 1960s and early 70s, which stopped the destruction of Lake Manapouri for a hydroelectricity dam. He has been a leading figure in tackling wilding tree problems in the South Island high country. Sir Alan has represented nature on many boards, including the New Zealand Conservation Authority, Fiordland Lake Guardians and Land Settlement Board.

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GERRY McSWEENEY is a Distinguished Life Member of Forest & Bird, and has contributed significantly to the organisation’s achievements over three decades as President and Executive member during the 2000s and fulltime Conservation Director from 1983-89. For the past 20 years he has run West Coast and Canterbury nature tourism businesses including a highcountry farm where he and his wife Anne Saunders presently live and are combining a working farm, a nature reserve and a nature tourism operation. As a member of the government’s Nature Heritage Fund since 1990, he and other committee members have helped protect more than 300,000 hectares of our rarest and most special ecosystems. He spearheaded the creation of Te WähipounamuSouth West New Zealand World Heritage Area in 1991. He was a leader in the campaign to end state logging of West Coast native forests and with Kevin Smith negotiated the Tasman and New Zealand Forest Accords with the NZ timber industry. Gerry continues to passionately campaign to save native plants and animals by supporting pest control over extensive natural areas using the best available tools, including aerial 1080. CRAIG POTTON is a member of Forest & Bird’s Executive, and has been campaigning for native forests, marine reserves, wetlands, rivers and on other conservation issues since the 1970s. He worked for the Native Forest Action Council and has been a member of Forest & Bird’s Executive for many years. As a landscape photographer and book publisher, Craig has given New Zealanders the chance to see our most isolated wild places. Last year he presented the five-part Rivers TV series, and this year he is making a follow-up series about the conservation values of our coasts. Craig spent 10 years on the New Zealand Conservation Authority and three years on the Nelson-Marlborough Conservation Board. He has represented nature as a councillor on Nelson City Council and NelsonMarlborough Regional Council.

Forest & Bird is grateful for Linda’s enormous contributions to the authority over nine years. With a background in resource management planning, as an orchardist and a conservationist, she delivered real gains for nature. Linda was able to play a key part in the development of policy by the authority and, as a tireless worker, was one of the more influential members. The authority approves national park policy and management plans and advises the Minister of Conservation and the Director-General of Conservation on conservation planning and policy development for the other public conservation areas. Gerry McSweeney will take Linda’s place on the authority.

Colin Ryder a local hero Thanks to Linda Conning Linda Conning, from Whakatane, stands down at the end of this month as Forest & Bird’s representative on the New Zealand Conservation Authority. Linda, who is also on Forest & Bird’s Eastern Bay of Plenty branch committee, has been on the authority since mid-2002.

Wellington Forest & Bird member Colin Ryder has received a Local Heroes medal for his volunteer environmental work. The medal is part of the New Zealander of the year awards. Colin has devoted much of his non-working life to the environment, and for more than 20 years he has led conservation projects in the Wellington region. Colin received the medal at a ceremony in Wellington in March.

A scientific advocate for nature By Gordon Ell

meritus Professor John Edward Morton QSO, a Distinguished Life Member of Forest & Bird, died aged 87 on March 6. His memorable association with Forest & Bird in the late 1970s and early 1980s was as a campaigner for the preservation of native forests, particularly in the central North Island. John joined Forest & Bird’s Executive at a time when the Society was evolving into a politically savvy pressure group for nature. He was never an enthusiast for local committee work, preferring to lend his scientific authority to Forest & Bird’s arguments. Yet, he was generous with his time, introducing children to the nature of the seashore, and enthusing the membership with talks and field trips. A gifted communicator on many different levels, he frequently appeared on radio and television. He was involved with children’s television in its early days. He held his audience transfixed as he screwed his body and features into the essence of the sea creatures he talked about. Later, he introduced wildlife features on television, providing a local angle on their significance. An Auckland University graduate, John was the first professor of zoology there, appointed in 1960 after 10 years as a doctoral candidate and lecturer at the University of London. His experience at the Plymouth Marine Laboratory gave him a model for the Leigh Marine Laboratory of the University of Auckland and led to his hiring English scientists such as Bill Ballantine, the director of Leigh, and Michal Miller, co-author of Morton’s seminal work on The New Zealand Seashore (1968).

As a teacher John was inspirational: in the lecture room he drew the habitats he lectured on, just as his field notes were usually complex drawings rather than lists of species. Writing books was a major stream of John’s work. Beginning with undergraduate texts such as Molluscs and Guts (available also in Japanese), he wrote further texts about coastlines around the Pacific, culminating in his major work, Seashore Ecology of New Zealand and the Pacific. He also joined with engineer David Thom and biochemist Ron Locker to write Seacoasts for the Seventies, which identified the aesthetic damage New Zealanders do in developing the coast. He edited the Natural History of Auckland, after his time as an Auckland regional councillor serving on the committee that built up its network of regional parks. John also wrote significant books on science and theology, and he was active in the Anglican church. John always made much of the practical support given by his wife, Pat, who was also active in conservation work on the North Shore. Less than three weeks after John’s death, Pat died, aged 90. Gordon Ell is a former president of Forest & Bird.

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WETA SEX

fast and furious 1 22

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MAUD ISLAND

Love is a battlefield for weta, with males’ sprinting and aggressive sword play deciding the winners in the search for a mate. By Darryl Gwynne and Clint Kelly.

eta males – some with facial tusks and others with long blade-like jaws – are not sexy in the sense of being attractive. But in 1920, New Zealand entomologist George Hudson suggested that weta weaponry illustrated the Darwinian principle of sexual selection by improving male success in getting a mate. Darwin and Hudson’s work inspired us to study weta sex, and Maud Island, in the Marlborough Sounds, seemed the perfect location because representatives of three weta groups are abundant there. Sadly, this is not the case on New Zealand’s mainland, where introduced predators have eradicated many species. Most large giant weta species survive today on conservation islands such as Maud. Our studies have revealed the mating of various weta to be every bit as fascinating as their structural splendour. We have linked weta behaviour, structure and even their body size to Darwinian sexual selection. Our main quarry on Maud Island was the Wellington tree weta, Hemideina crassidens, and the closely related Cook Strait giant weta, Deinacrida rugosa. We also studied a Hemiandrus ground weta, an unnamed species and one checking in at only 3 per cent of the weight of the giant weta that occasionally looms over it. Each of these species possesses an entirely different mating pattern, unlike their relatives, crickets and katydids, where typically the female homes in on the male’s mating song because he provides a food-offering or the safety of a burrow. For weta, getting together is a silent endeavour, yet the key to understanding their variable mating still appears to be resources important to the female. The mating biology of Wellington tree weta seems more akin to that of some mammals than insects because males defend harems. In Maud Island’s woodland we found most harems in holes in mahoe trees. The most sought-after of these “galleries” are typically large with just one entrance. Each is guarded by a male with a big head equipped with mandible (jaw) swords sometimes as long as the rest of his body.

He faces inward to a cavity with up to a dozen females. Intruding rivals are confronted with the hind end of the harem master rather than his weapons. A fight starts when the resident is pulled out by his back legs. The rivals square off with jaws flared and the male with the smaller equipment scampers away. In more even matches a contest ensues where mandible-weapons are locked, twisted and pulled. Fights end when a loser is tossed from the tree. Unlucky losers can receive a crushed head or have a mandible snipped off by their opponent. These observations suggested that male tree weta were vying for long-term control of a resource – the best galleries. We tested this idea by daily tracking down individually marked weta. Surprisingly, males stayed only about a day and a half, about half that of the females, though males will stay longer if a harem is large. A gallery is not a male’s long-term home and fortress but instead appears to be a staging post hosting a series of itinerant and aggressive gigolos in search of receptive females. A male appears to move on once he has mated with all the females. In an unconventional approach to mating, he unceremoniously hauls each female out of the gallery in much the same way as he would a rival. He attaches a sperm capsule to her, which, as in all weta, acts like a tiny turkey baster to inject sperm after the pair has separated. There is little opportunity for the female to reject his advances and his belligerent behaviour continues after copulation when he again grasps her with his mandibles and throws her from the tree. This behaviour surprised us because other insect males stick by their mates to prevent matings with rivals. Evicting the female may have the same effect because the female can remove the sperm capsule prematurely if another male coming to the gallery attempts to mate. By ejecting his female, a male appears to reduce the risk of having the transfer of his sperm interrupted. Worse than interrupted ejaculation is not mating at all – yet this would seem to be the fate of small-headed male

1 Wellington tree weta mating. Males defend harems, which is unusual behaviour for insects. Photo: Rod Morris 2 A female Cook Strait giant weta. Photo: Rob Suisted/www.naturespic.com

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tree weta that prudently retreat from the weapons of larger opponents. As it turns out, though small-heads are ousted from the prime real estate, they can hole up with the occasional female in a narrow gallery safe from harassment by well-endowed competitors because a large a set of head-gear cannot fit through the entrance. This and other evidence indicates that small-head males adopt a nonaggressive mating alternative to that of harem defence. t was relatively straightforward to find groups of tree weta in galleries to study. However, giant weta were a very different story. We could easily spot these insect leviathans, but how were we to understand the process of sexual selection? Occasionally we would see a solitary individual feeding on grass or a female laying eggs into the soil. On warm nights on the grasslands overlooking Maud Island’s Home Bay, we had often observed a male at the heels of a lugubrious female. These suitors may have found their mates using scent, or pairs may have formed when boyweta stumbled across girl-weta in the darkness. It appeared that sometime before dawn the two nestled down for a day-long liaison under whatever dry grass clump was close at hand. Given that the needs of the female – a refuge, food and a place to lay eggs – are widely dispersed, there was little benefit to males in aggressively defending these resources. But was there any rivalry among males? We addressed this by radio tracking uniquely marked individuals. The tiny transmitters we glued on to the thorax were not much of a burden for our supersized insects. A large sex difference in size motivated our main hypothesis. Females of the Cook Strait giant weta weigh in at over 20 grams, twice that of males. The need for females

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to be large to accommodate lots of eggs could not fully explain the extreme size difference. After all, in virtually all other weta the sexes are quite similar in overall body size. This led us to ponder whether, in contrast to the familiar Darwinian drama of heavyweights winning fights, small giant weta males had the advantage. Males do not defend resources so perhaps the best strategy is to scramble for mates, with lightweights favoured because they cover more ground. Our test of this idea involved tracking down all tagged weta late each afternoon. We found many of them paired, nestled deep at the base of grass clumps where the male was spooned in beneath the female. We found that each pair had copulated frequently throughout the day – as revealed by the dozen or more empty sperm capsules dropped around them like condoms on a bedroom floor. At this point we disrupted the love nest to measure the weta. Our recapture information showed that small males and those with long legs were covering more ground than their rivals. One bantamweight had legged it at least 100 metres in 24 hours – a marathon for a flightless insect. We found no association between female size and their nocturnal roaming distances. Most important was our finding that the distance males travelled was critical to their reproductive success. For success we had a better measure than simply the number of mating liaisons with different females. By counting the number of empty sperm capsules transferred in the day-long mating session we were able to relate male mobility directly to their insemination success; each inserted sperm capsule would have upped that male’s contribution to the competitive mix of sperm from rivals already stored inside the female.

e know little about the mating habits of tusked weta, except that male tusks are used in fights in the endangered Motuweta isolata. There is some hope, however, on two fronts. First, a new species – Motuweta riparia – is now known. Near a pristine North Island forest stream we have found a healthy population that cries out for future study. Motuweta isolata has elaborate male tusks and enormous bulk. The only native survivors were on a tiny island in the Mercury group. In 2002, one of us took part in a Department of Conservation search for this species. We found none and the outlook seemed grim because no individuals have since been found on the island. However, thanks to a captive rearing programme by DOC and release of this big tusked weta on to other islands in the Mercury group, the species now thrives. In 2002, it was a thrill to join in the discovery of the first hatchling tuskers on one of these other islands. So there is hope that healthy populations of M. isolata will eventually be restored to the New Zealand landscape and that future research will reveal this unique elephantine insect as another fine example illustrating the Darwinian mechanism of sexual selection. Darryl Gwynne, University of Toronto, and his former PhD student Clint Kelly, now at Iowa State University, are professors of ecology and evolution. They have studied weta – and have been privileged to work on Maud Island/ Te Hoiere – for the better part of the past decade while funded by The National Geographic Society and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Dinner date Well over half of New Zealand’s weta species are tiny Hemiandrus. These ground weta are virtually unknown compared with their larger and well-armed cousins but they have unique mating habits and structures that – as in other weta – are related to a resource important to females. The newly mated Hemiandrus female grasps and eats a nutritious doughy mass that is ejaculated by her mate along with his sperm packet. The lack of this meal in our other weta is unusual as it is widespread in related insect families. We discovered that, unlike most relatives, the male ground weta on Maud Island does not attach his nuptial gift to the sperm packet. Instead he places it partway up his partner’s underside so she simply tucks her “chin” down to eat it. The males of this and other ground weta advertise their offerings by tapping the abdomen on a leaf. After being attracted to this seismic signal, the female erects a bizarre appendage partway up her abdomen that functions as a secondary copulation site to which the male attaches while his genitals squeeze out the gooey gift. This abdominal appendage varies greatly between species: from a two-lobed structure in our Maud Island Hemiandrus to a bizarre, long elbowed device in the related Hemiandrus pallitarsis. Such species differences in female “secondary” organs is opposite to the familiar Darwinian pattern of species variation in male ornaments or armaments. Behavioural evidence such as a male ground weta rejecting a female after apparently assessing her abdominal ornament suggests that sexual selection of females has led to the evolution of these highly unusual structures.

Big, ugly and struggling Large, flightless weta are walking meat pies for foraging introduced mammals such as rodents. Particularly vulnerable – to both predation and habitat change – are giant and tusked weta that live on the ground and use retreats in shallow burrows or low vegetation. They have survived mainly on rodent-free offshore islands that have turned out to be valuable sources for successful translocation to other areas, especially islands. The first translocations involved Cook Strait giant weta that were moved from Mana Island to Maud Island in the 1970s and, more recently, in the Wellington area, to Matiu-Somes Island and Karori sanctuary (Zealandia). Mahoenui giant weta (Deianacrida mahoenui), were originally found in one small mainland area of goat-browsed dense gorse. Non-native gorse, ironically, protects weta from rodents. Translocations have produced healthy populations, including one on Mahurangi Island, off the Coromandel Peninsula. Since the first translocations in 2001, growing populations of Mercury Island tusked weta now exist on five Mercury islands.

3 Darryl Gwynne radio tracks giant weta on Maud Island. Photo: Clint Kelly 4 A radio tag is attached to a giant weta on Maud Island. Photo: Clint Kelly 5 The radio tag is removed. Photo: Darryl Gwynne

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A new breed of

kakapo

Jenny Lynch spent two weeks as a volunteer supplementary feeder for critically endangered kakapo on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island in summer. She also followed the team helping to improve the kakapo’s gene pool.

akapo are descended almost exclusively from birds found on Stewart Island, apart from the three offspring of Richard Henry, who was the only Fiordland bird to survive and breed. Artificial insemination was first used in the Kakapo Recovery Programme in the 2008 breeding season to help increase the genetic diversity of the kakapo population, which, at the end of last year, stood at just 120 birds. Artificial insemination allows the kakapo recovery team to manage the population, improving fertility rates and introducing more genetic diversity into future generations, which will help the kakapo’s survival. The first two chicks from artificial insemination were part of the bumper breeding season of 2009, when 33 chicks hatched. I join kakapo ranger Dana Boyte as she heads up the Summit Track, with the artificial insemination team close behind, to find Gulliver, one of Richard Henry’s sons and a genetically valuable bird. The artificial insemination team arrive with their field laboratory – a microscope, table and various tubes and pipettes used to collect and store the sperm. All we need now is the bird. Kakapo on Whenua Hou carry transmitters to help staff pinpoint their location to within a few metres. However, kakapo are amazingly camouflaged and, to untrained eyes like mine, very difficult to spot in the mossy green undergrowth. While I’m unhelpfully peering into the bushes

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Dana casually takes a few steps and cheerfully shouts “Got him!” She emerges with a slightly disgruntled Gulliver. This is my first encounter with the bird I have read about since I was a kid. He is much bigger than I thought, weighing in at well over three kilograms, and I get my first whiff of that infamous kakapo scent – sweet, musty and earthy. We place Gulliver on the table. Dana makes sure his feet and wings are kept still and I hold his head to stop him biting Daryl Eason, who is in charge of the artificial insemination and is a long-time member of the Kakapo Recovery Team. Daryl is skilled at the massage technique introduced to the kakapo recovery team by Spanish vet and bird reproduction expert Juan Blanco, who uses the technique on eagles. This is the first year that Juan hasn’t joined the team. Daryl and Deidre Vercoe, who has managed the Kakapo Recovery Programme, went to Spain for a lesson from Juan. Other sperm collection techniques have been trialled, including electroejaculation, which involved anaesthetising the kakapo. This was deemed too risky to use with such a vulnerable population. The massage technique, on the other hand, is gentle. It looks easy but takes great skill. Daryl explains that he is massaging the lower back of the kakapo with both hands and putting pressure on the area around the cloaca where the globus, the sperm storage area, is found. Gulliver is a

healthy young male so it only takes a short time to collect a sample with a small straw. The sample is passed to Samantha Gale and Ellie Watts from the Cawthron Institute in Nelson, who more typically work on the cryopreservation and sperm analysis of shellfish. Sam takes to her microscope, which has been lugged up the hill, to check the motility, form and number of the sperm collected. Not all male kakapo have viable sperm, because of old age or inbreeding, and this can cause infertile eggs to be laid by females. In 2005, more than half the eggs laid were infertile, a scenario that artificial insemination will help stop. There is an air of anxiousness as we wait to see if Gulliver has what it takes to become a much-needed contributor to the kakapo gene pool. The news is good. Gulliver’s Fiordland genetics have given him healthy sperm in large numbers – just what the kakapo team wanted to hear. After collecting a few more samples, Gulliver is released back into the undergrowth. He doesn’t take off at high speed like I expected, but ambles around us as we pack up, shaking his feathers back into place then quietly makes his way back into the bushes. We head off across the island to find Solstice, a female known to have mated recently and therefore a good candidate for artificial insemination, as it can simulate a second mating. From under a rimu tree I can just see Solstice’s tail feathers hanging down among the prickly leaves. Operations ranger Jo Ledington, a tree climber extraordinaire, is quickly up the tree using a collection of ropes for support. A loud “skraak” and a shuffle in the branches tell us Solstice has been caught and she is gently lowered in a bag to the ground. The insemination process is much more delicate than the sperm collection. The team is silent as Daryl takes a tiny amount of sperm in a syringe, working quickly to avoid more stress to the bird. Kakapo females have only one ovary so if the sperm isn’t placed in just the right spot it can prevent the sperm reaching an egg to fertilise. Daryl completes the procedure and we let go of our breath, hoping that the insemination will be successful. Daryl explains that the paternity of any chicks that hatch will not be known until they are much older and genetic samples can be taken, but he is hopeful. As I leave Whenua Hou a few days later, news of the first egg laid for the season reaches the hut. Not long after, Solstice produces three fertile eggs, a promising sign that the artificial insemination team’s efforts have been successful. In the end, 11 chicks hatch this season, bringing the kakapo population to 131– 80 more than at its lowest point. Jenny Lynch is Forest & Bird’s Kiwi Conservation Club Officer and Wellington branch Places for Penguins project co-ordinator.

1 Kakapo team member Daryl Eason with Sinbad. Photo: Ellie Watts 2 Coastal rata forest on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island. Photo: Ellie Watts 3 Jenny Lynch on kakapo duty.

Labour of love Forest & Bird and Rio Tinto Alcan are partners with the Department of Conservation in the Kakapo Recovery Programme, an intensive project to bring back kakapo from the brink of extinction. More information on volunteer work: www.kakaporecovery.org.nz/volunteers/

WHENUA HOU/ CODFISH ISLAND STEWART ISLAND

4 From left, Daryl Eason, Ellie Watts and Jo Ledington using the massage technique to collect sperm from a kakapo.

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Conservation

superhero

Rod Morris pays tribute to one of New Zealand’s greatest conservationists, Don Merton.

omewhere between a childhood reading Gerald Durrell books, and life as a young man watching David Attenborough documentaries, I began to work with Don Merton. I joined the Wildlife Service as a trainee, and the first of many field expeditions with Don was a biological survey of the Mercury Islands. Don soon became a mentor and a friend. On every trip he taught by example, and worked harder than the rest of us. Until I met Don, my experience of conservation had been limited to a few desperate tales of rare species, with invariably sad endings. Don changed that. He turned conservation into one great practical adventure. We were part of a solution not a problem. Don was ill for many months with advanced pancreatic cancer before his death on April 10. It is appropriate that we pay tribute to this remarkable man, and his tireless work for our endangered wildlife.

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or a remarkable half century, species intervention in New Zealand has sailed some of its stormiest seas under the quietly determined captaincy of Don Merton. I was fortunate to be one of many who worked with him during his spectacular rescues of the kakapo and the black robin (toutouwai). Although both were extremely risky ventures, Don was never reckless. He was methodical in planning a rescue mission, and when the time came to act, he was ready. While others would want to discuss and debate, Don would soon reach a point where he was ready to move. “Don’t wait until you have all the facts,” he’d say. “You’ll never have all the information you’d like. Action is what will bring change now.” Much of Don’s winning formula for island translocation work was perfected in the early 1960s – a blend of meticulously researched and innovative bird capture techniques (deploying mist nets, stuffed decoys and

switchable speaker systems) coupled with creative captive husbandry. He also drew heavily on his boat-handling skills around cliff-girded landing sites in heavy ocean swells for the early island transfer work. Some time before March 1964, ship rats invaded the islands of Big South Cape, off Stewart Island, and threatened the survival of the South Island saddleback (tïeke). Don and fellow Wildlife Service officer Brian Bell were worried about the rats and their impact on native wildlife. But the scientists were not convinced. They argued that extinction could not possibly be caused by rats. After all, many birds around the world share islands with rats. Influenced by a few scientists, the government refused to authorise an early attempt at a rescue and delays ran on for several months. Even birds such as robins, parakeets, fernbirds and banded rails succumbed to the rats. When the transfer finally got the go-ahead – in August/September 1964 – it was almost too late for the South Island saddleback and only 36 could be found. Fortunately, preparatory work done by Don meant these birds could be saved, but the delay had exacted a high toll. The rats sent three other endangered species to extinction – Stead’s bush wren, the Stewart Island snipe and the greater short-tailed bat. Before most people realised that rats were a threat to wildlife, Don was eradicating them. He surveyed a handful of small islands in the Hauraki Gulf and Marlborough Sounds in the early 1960s, and worried that seabirds such as storm petrels and diving petrels might be at risk from island-dwelling rats. He and colleagues put rat baits around the islands, stored in discarded cabin-bread tins to help keep them dry. They were probably our first bait stations. Years later, when the threat was better understood, biologists visited these islands to eradicate rats still thought

to be there. They discovered Don’s primitive bait stations had already done their job. He was always 10 years ahead of the rest of us – always thinking about where the next problem might come from, always thinking of the bigger picture and long-term consequences. He didn’t just remove rats. Back then, Don and Brian were already pioneering what we now know as island restoration techniques – eradicating feral goats and feral cats from Cuvier Island. Over the next 40 years or so, Don became involved in 20 separate eradications on 17 of the world’s islands. He has been involved in removing nine different feral mammal species – from wild dogs on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean to house mice in the Seychelles. His advice and knowledge continues to be sought by organisations such as BirdLife International and the Durrell Institute, and famous individuals and conservation advocates such as Jane Goodall. Most New Zealanders know Don best for his extraordinary work saving kakapo and black robins. In the mid-1970s he oversaw the rescue of the last remaining seven black robins from Little Mangere Island, in the Chathams, shifting them to the nearby forest on Mangere Island. Once again, approval for the transfers came almost too late. To boost numbers, Don returned again and again through the late 1970s and 80s with an armoury of new strategies to rescue a struggling population. At one stage, it got down to five birds, including a single successful breeding pair. True to form, Don never gave up. His first attempted cross-fostering put black robin chicks into Chatham Island warbler nests. When that proved problematic, he shifted the chicks to tomtit nests, but when that presented imprinting problems, he doubled up

3 1 Don Merton cuddles a12-weekold male kakapo on Stewart Island in 1981. Photo: Margaret Stoppard/DOC 2 Don Merton with Kakapo “Jill” and an open carrying cage at Esperance Valley, Fiordland, in 1974. Photo: Rod Morris/DOC

Don’t wait until you have all the facts. You’ll never have all the information you’d like. Action is what will bring change now.

3 Don Merton (centre), with old mates Rodney Russ (left) and Rod Morris. Photo: Nathan Russ

Don Merton

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4 Don Merton and a kakapo team at Esperance Valley, Fiordland, in 1974. From left, Chris Smuts-Kennedy, John Cheyne and Don Merton. Photo: Chris Smuts-Kennedy/DOC 5 Don Merton inspects a nest box of Chatham Island black robin eggs under the watchful eye of a Chatham Island tomtit foster parent. Photo: Rick Thorpe/DOC

clutches and back-fostered them to black robins. Through creativity, courage and determination, he succeeded where others may have failed. While he was rescuing robins, Don also led efforts to confirm that kakapo existed in the wilds of Fiordland. When he found the kakapo survivors were all males, he shifted his efforts to Stewart Island after Rodney Russ discovered a remnant breeding population there. Don and colleagues agitated for all kakapo to be moved to safer offshore islands after feral cats and rats were found to be decimating the Stewart Island population – a move that saved the species from extinction. As the kakapo recovery programme grew in size and complexity, Don continued to plan and execute much of the field work. He worked with a burgeoning army of scientists, field officers, kakapo nest-minders and volunteers. His lateral thinking and innovation have become the hallmarks of a world-leading programme that continues to break new ground. From a low of fewer than 51 known birds in the mid-1990s, kakapo now number more than 120. Before Don died I asked him what he saw as the next big issue for kakapo. He felt that a larger predator-free environment is needed for the steadily increasing population. The looming prospects of climate change and severe government funding cuts only increase the risk to the kakapo programme, which the Department of Conservation and sponsor Rio Tinto Alcan have generously funded. It is both labour intensive and expensive, and funding could dry up. Don believed new homes for kakapo should be trialled, including the sub-Antarctic Campbell Island. Kakapo are an extraordinarily cold-tolerant species, snow tussock is a reliable mast species that may support kakapo breeding, and solitary, selective browsers like kakapo would not be a threat to the island’s megaherbs. A sensible first step would be to place a few surplus male birds there and monitor their progress. Sinbad Gully in Fiordland could be another exciting possibility. What about black robins? He would have liked to see black robins returned to the top of predator-free Little Mangere, where the tiny population survived unaided for so long. Such an insurance policy may prove vital again one day. And if Pitt and Chatham Islanders were to create predator-free reserves, large enough for new populations 30

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of black robins to be established, eco-tourism opportunities would grow in the Chathams. And for the future of conservation? He saw a real need for conservation groups to reach out to young New Zealanders, especially those of non-European descent,who appear seriously under-represented in modern conservation. All my adult life I have been fortunate enough to work alongside individuals who have made a difference. I have learned that even the late Gerald Durrell, Jane Goodall and David Attenborough have their heroes. One of them was Don Merton.

Busman’s holidays Don Merton’s contribution to conservation on islands in the Indian Ocean has been enormous, and was invariably carried out as unpaid work while on leave from the Department of Conservation. In the late 1980s he helped Gerald Durrell’s Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust (now the Durrell Institute), and Carl Jones’s Mauritian Wildlife Foundation to save the echo parakeet (at that time the world’s rarest parrot). He organised and led the campaign to eradicate rabbits from Round Island, off the coast of Mauritius – a massive logistical exercise involving other New Zealanders including Gary Aburn and Andy Roberts. Don later developed – with New Zealand botanist Ian Atkinson – the management plan for Round Island. In the early 1990s he helped BirdLife International and Conservation Seychelles with the highly threatened Seychelles magpie robin. He soon realised that the greatest problem for the magpie robin and the archipelago was rats, so he helped find the funds and led the eradication teams. Through his leadership and active field role in the Indian Ocean, young New Zealanders ventured overseas to help Don, including Gideon Climo, Tim Lovegrove, Rick Thorpe, Mike Thorsen and more than 60 others.

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Walking

on water

Forest & Bird marine advocate Karen Baird braved rough seas and airport security guards in her mission to help find a new species of storm petrel off Chile’s coast.

year ago, a group of Irish and American birders saw what they thought was an undescribed species of storm petrel while sailing on a cruise ship from Puerto Montt in southern Chile. British seabird expert Peter Harrison took up the challenge of determining what these birds were. He flew to Buenos Aires, in Argentina, to investigate two specimens of birds found inland in 1972 and 1983. Peter’s investigations suggested these were the same birds we were looking for near Puerto Montt. Peter , who published his authoritative Seabirds of the World in 1983, in February brought together an expedition team including his wife Shirley Metz (the first woman to ski to the South Pole), Chilean ornithologist Dr Michel Sallaberry Ayerza, my husband Chris Gaskin and myself. On our first day on the water in a chartered fishing boat, the wind was cold and strong and our eyes watered continuously as we strained to catch sight of the mysterious storm petrels. At first we saw very few seabirds as we crossed the wide inlet south of Puerto Montt, the head of Chile’s southern fiords. As we considered heading for more sheltered waters for a little respite, Chris spied our first storm petrel. Further on, we saw more of these delightful little birds and Peter began frantically photographing. The wind was too strong to risk launching the tiny wooden dinghy so we concentrated on observing the birds’ unique behaviour and getting good photographs. The next day, the wind had dropped a little. Soon after spying the birds, I clambered into the dinghy clutching a

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net gun. To fire it, I swung my legs over the transom, rested the rather cumbersome net gun on my legs then tested its weight and manoeuvrability. Chris rowed steadily into the wind and with our bait (a bag of oily salmon bits) laid a visual and scent trail to attract the birds close enough for me to take a shot. To prove that these were a new species, good photos as well as biometric measurements and biological samples would be needed. A lot rested on our successful capture of one of these tiny birds. I felt nervous because the team was depending on us. My first two shots missed – I was too anxious and fired before the birds came close enough. These birds are extremely manoeuvrable and could easily evade the net. With just two net guns, each had to be reloaded after a shot. We returned to the boat for reloading, a tedious business as the net had to be carefully untangled, folded and packed back into the gun so that it would shoot out smoothly. Chris was expert at this, and Alfonso, our local skipper, who took great interest in what we were doing, was soon helping him below deck. Rowing back out, Chris again got us into a good position. I waited more patiently this time and fired. We had one! I was ecstatic! I could hear the boat team yelling with delight in English and Spanish – it all sounds the same across the water. There were even a few emotional tears, I was later told. I pulled the net in and gently cradled the bird as Chris rowed us back to the fishing boat, where we handed it over to the waiting team.

2 Over the next three days we captured 12 birds, taking measurements and samples before releasing them. The net guns were vital in the successful capture of the birds. Harvey Carran, a farmer and enthusiastic handyman, in collaboration with Chris, updated and improved earlier models used to study the recently rediscovered New Zealand storm petrel. Getting these intriguing devices on planes for the flight to and from Chile required a great deal of discussion and sign language with airport security people in Auckland and Santiago, but that’s another story. There are just 22 known storm petrels worldwide. With high-quality photos and measurements Peter was confident: “These birds are likely to be a completely new species as they are so different from any other storm petrel we know.” We were 2-3 hours cruising from Puerto Montt in a wide inlet called Seno Reloncavi. This inlet and the nearby waters are separated from the Pacific Ocean by Chiloe Archipelago, a myriad of islands that includes Chiloe, Chile’s second-largest island. It’s a very productive stretch of waterways, wide inlets and gulfs. We were amazed by how many of these tiny dancing black and white birds we saw during our four days on the water – petrels are so named as they walk on water like St Peter and none as effectively as storm petrels. One of Chile’s leading ornithologists, Dr Michel Sallaberry Ayerza of the Department of Ecological Science at the University of Chile, collected blood samples and feathers, which will be analysed to confirm the identity of the new species. “This is a very important discovery for Chile, and the birds are in good numbers. In fact they are the most common seabird in the waters here in Seno Reloncavi,” he said. We were delighted our expedition had such a successful outcome, and work on preparing the scientific paper describing these birds is well under way. A trip to find their breeding site is planned for later in the year. However, we had one concern. In recent years, marine farming in these northern fiord areas of Chile has boomed. Salmon and mussel farms line the fiords, pots for catching king crabs and long lines for fish hang off buoys everywhere. One of the downsides is that many buoys are filled with polystyrene or are simply great blocks of the stuff. These deteriorate over time, come loose and end up on beaches on islands and along the mainland coast. They get broken up by the sea and washed around, the fragments getting smaller and more numerous over time. We noticed other marine debris in huge quantities too, plastic of all kinds and ropes washing around in current lines and on beaches. Storm petrels pick up surface prey, zooplankton including fish eggs and larvae as well as fish offal whether it originates from fishing activity or sea lions’ feeding. These birds seem to be great scavengers, and we wonder how the debris will affect them. Our hope is that Chileans, especially people who live in Puerto Montt, will adopt this bird as their own, a symbol of the fertility of the region, and galvanise efforts to reduce plastic debris entering the marine systems and ensure these little sea-dancers have a bright future.

SANTIAGO

CHILE

PUERTO MONTT

1 Karen Baird aims her net gun to catch the mysterious Chile storm petrel. Photo: Shirley Metz 2 Mount Osorno dominates the distant skyline of Puerto Montt in southern Chile. Photo: Karen Baird 3 The expedition team, back left Chris Gaskin and Dr Michel Sallaberry Ayerza, and front left Karen Baird, Shirley Metz and Peter Harrison. 4 All eyes were on the new species of storm petrel. Photo: Peter Harrison

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Winning the

rat race

About 70 Auckland neighbours in Paremoremo have evicted rats and possums from their gardens and welcomed native birds in their place. By Marina Skinner.

erry McLachlan dreams that one day he’ll have kiwi poking around in his Auckland backyard. Even if that seems a distant goal, he’s doing the best he can to create a safe haven for more common native birds. In semi-rural Paremoremo, at the northern edge of the North Shore, Derry and 70 other neighbours are controlling possums, rats, stoats and other introduced pests on their properties. They are part of the Pest Free Pare project, which is backed by Forest & Bird. Before Derry became the project co-ordinator in 2007, he and his wife, Judi, had many problems with possums on their one-acre property. “They were eating our grapefruit and lemons and creating havoc,” he says. He found a rat in his compost bin and neighbours saw them running over their roofs and decks. The McLachlans were keen to see more native birds in their garden, which includes a patch of regenerating native bush and a stream.

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Forest & Bird Auckland Field Officer Nick Beveridge helped organise a survey of pests in the area, putting tracking tunnels in a few gardens to check which pests were there. The first survey in August 2008 recorded pests in 11 properties but the most recent survey last September recorded pests in just three properties. Derry had never set a trap or filled a bait station, but he completed a two-day NZQA course on pest control. With advice from Nick, he put two Timms traps, a DOC200 trap and four bait stations around his garden. The equipment and bait are subsidised by the Biodiversity Condition Fund. In the first year, Derry caught eight possums and six rats in the Timms traps. It’s impossible to tell how many rats and possums took the bait but Derry had to top up the bait stations every couple of days initially. Now, there are so few rats or possums to eat the bait that it goes off before it’s consumed. “A lot of people don’t like disposing of dead

BACKYARD conservation

bodies,” Derry observes. They prefer bait, which means no animal carcasses to get rid of but it’s harder to tell how many pests have been killed. Derry started out checking his traps at least once a week, which didn’t take long on a small property. Last month he caught the first possum in two years, which shows the need for ongoing pest control. He has put bait stations on trees at eye level so it’s easy to see if bait has been taken and whether it needs replacing. “People don’t need to do a lot to see a big change,” Derry says. “All they need to do is put some bait in a bait station. It only takes a few minutes.” The McLachlans are starting to enjoy the benefits of a pest-free backyard. The main avian visitors were once sparrows and doves but now kereru, tui and fantails (piwakawaka) are regulars. “The kereru sit in our birdbath and splash around,” he says. With the pests gone, the McLachlans are making an effort to make native birds feel at home. They have put in two bird feeders filled with sugar water for the tui, and they have planted native plants, such as flaxes, kowhai, sedges, kawakawa, putaputaweta and kahikatea. They were never happy about the possums and rats raiding their fruit trees but they’re perfectly content to indulge the birds. “It doesn’t matter if you lose a bit of fruit,” Derry says. “We think if they want to have a feed, they can. I don’t mind sharing a bit.” Paremoremo locals have become more interested in wildlife, and Forest & Bird’s North Shore branch chair, Alan Emmerson, and Nick have given community talks about native birds. An annual bird survey is held one weekend in November. Figures from the survey last November show 415 reports of native birds of 14 species including tui, fantails, grey warblers, kingfishers, keruru and paradise ducks.

“People are often commenting that there are a lot more birds in the area,” Derry says. “The use of the bait has gone down. It seems to have knocked a lot of the problem but we’ve got to keep vigilant about it. The emphasis now should be on encouraging bird feeders and planting trees for the birds.” Derry sees his community playing a part in a much bigger project, the North-West Wildlink, which aims to create a corridor for birds stretching between Tiritiri Matangi Island wildlife sanctuary in the Hauraki Gulf and the Forest & Bird/Auckland Council Ark in the Park in the western Waitakere Ranges. Nick would like to attract tuneful bellbirds back to the Paremoremo/Lucas Creek bush area. “Bellbirds have been extinct in the Auckland area for more than 100 years,” he says. “They were introduced to Tiritiri and they have started moving back to the mainland. They’ve even been seen on the North Shore. We’d like to get them to Paremoremo as another step on the way to Ark in the Park.” The Pest Free Pare project has had spin-offs for the people of Paremoremo as much as the birds. Derry says it’s helped build a better community, with people getting to know each other and sharing a common goal. “It has been very satisfying to see the results and to see the bird life that’s improved around the local area. We’ve got to keep up what we’re doing.” 1 A tui at a sugar water feeder in the Auckland garden of Derry and Judi McLachlan. Photos: Crispin Anderlini/ www.crispinanderlini.com 2 A fantail checks out Derry as he checks a bait station in his backyard.

• PAREMOREMO

3 One of the regular visitors to the McLachlans’ garden.

AUCKLAND

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DIY

How to beat the pests 1 2 3

conservation

Use Timms traps for catching possums. Use DOC 200 traps for stoats, rats and hedgehogs. Hedgehogs do not deserve their Mrs Tiggy-Winkle reputation since they eat eggs and chicks of birds that nest on the ground. Put bait stations on posts or trees a metre off the ground to stop dogs accidentally coming into contact with bait.

8 9

Plant flowering native plants to attract native birds. Put a bird feeder in your garden to top up the food your plants provide.

4 Derry checks his DOC 200 trap. 5 One of Derryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Timms traps for possums. 6 Checking a bait station attached to a tree.

4 5 6 7 36

Use Brodifacoum bait for rats and possums and RatAbate for rats. Check traps at least once a week. Check and top up bait stations every two days initially. Try a self-setting trap to catch rats and stoats from Goodnature. A possum trap is being trialled. See www.goodnature.co.nz Complete an NZQA course on pest control. See www.nzqa.govt.nz

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NATURE OF TOMORROW

Pest-free

paradise

Kapiti Island has been free of possums and rats since 1996. Photo: Kevin Jones/DOC

In the third part of a series about the future of New Zealand conservation, Wren Green takes a bold, hard look at how we manage introduced pests.

ttitude is important. When I envisage a possible future for pest management in New Zealand, a quote attributed to the German Goethe sets the right tone: “Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.” The key words here are “dream” and “bold”, since we began pest management long ago. Right from its beginnings, ingenuity – a travelling companion of boldness – has featured as well. Back in 1894, Richard Henry travelled to Resolution Island, the world’s first island sanctuary, as its newly appointed curator and caretaker. During his long sojourn there, Henry became a global pioneer of translocation techniques for rare endangered birds, particularly kiwi and kakapo. He ultimately left Resolution, despondent at the arrival of stoats that would undo his best efforts to provide a safe offshore island for endangered species, but his innovative techniques still inspire. Fast forward 70 years to 1964 and another defining bold moment in pest management. At the time, the conventional approach to protecting species was not particularly interventionist. Some writings by influential scientists and managers seemed more resigned to losing rare bird species than taking dramatic action to save them. And the ability of mammalian predators, especially rats and

stoats, to eliminate populations or even species was not fully appreciated. In 1964, a plague of rats threatened three rare bird species and a native bat that lived on Big South Cape, an island off Stewart Island (Rakiura). A few Wildlife Service field officers insisted that only urgent action to relocate these endangered species could save them. Others argued that this was unnecessary; the rat numbers would eventually go down. Nonetheless, a bold rescue operation went ahead and 36 rare South Island saddlebacks were successfully transferred to local rat-free islands. Translocations of the other two rare species, Stead’s bush wren and the local snipe, did not succeed and rats quickly killed off all the saddlebacks, bush wren, snipe and the unique native greater short-tailed bat left on Big South Cape. These three extinctions, and the dramatic rescue of the saddleback, was a wake-up call for conservation managers everywhere. Hard lessons were learned: introduced predators can drive native species to extinction; offshore islands can be essential refuges for vulnerable species; translocations can work; scientific authorities don’t always know best. Ridding offshore islands of pests to provide havens for other species then became one of the successful tools for conservation management. Forest & Bird

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ne thing conservationists should do more often, in my opinion, is take the time to reflect on what their campaigns and actions have achieved – while acknowledging the part played by researchers and innovative management practices. When we do so, we can list some remarkable achievements since the 60s. For example: rat eradiation from Breaksea Island (170ha) in 1988 – then a world-first for large islands; the ingenuity of Don Merton and colleagues in rescuing the black robin from extinction; eradicating possums and rats from Kapiti Island (1965ha); dozens of eradications of mice, stoats, rats, deer, feral cats and possums from islands, followed by numerous successful transfers of birds, lizards and insects. In 2001, little more than a decade after clearing rats off Breaksea Island, DOC took on the bold dream of eradicating rats from Campbell Island, a massive 11,300ha sub-Antarctic island. Two years in the planning, and faced with novel logistical and technical challenges, the eradication was declared a success in 2005. Other countries now contemplate clearing large islands of pests that had previously been thought impossible. Sir David Bellamy has said: “New Zealand is the only country which has turned pest eradication into an export industry.” This reputation owes much to the innovative research and can-do attitude that has turned visions into reality. Then people boldly asked: “If we can do it on offshore islands, can we do it on the mainland?” This led to research during the 1990s into the feasibility of managing pests at low enough numbers in isolated areas of forest to benefit threatened species. The mainland islands model was born. Unfenced mainland islands were followed by private and innovative initiatives creating islands of habitat surrounded by predator-proof fences from which pests

were removed. Conservationists can take pride in their successful efforts to eliminate possums and other predators from Bushy Park and protect the increased kereru and kaka populations with a predator-proof fence around the whole area. However, high capital and maintenance costs limit the options for predator-proof fences. They are not a viable option for the larger landscapes over which ecosystems need to be managed and should not be held up as alternatives to the large-scale issues. hat might further research and technological advances in pest control allow us to boldly dream for tomorrow’s conservation goals? Pest management options fall into three basic classes – physical, chemical and biological. There is a new generation of physical “smart traps” (Forest & Bird magazine, November 2010) that shows how far trap technology has advanced from the days of the cruel Lanes Ace leg trap. Cheaper, humane, resetting kill-traps for rats, stoats and possums are being tested now. With further investment and development, they could revolutionise pest management by drastically cutting the labour costs that trapping currently requires. The chemical control option means using poisons. The current stand-out issue here is the aerial distribution of 1080 to control several different mammalian pests. In the past 30 years there have been many technological improvements in bait manufacture, guidance systems for pilots and improved sowing buckets to spread baits. Field research has improved our understanding of how to increase the acceptability of poisons, including 1080, to possums, rabbits, rats and stoats. The outcome of all these incremental improvements is best demonstrated by comparing how much 1080 bait was used in aerial operations in the 1970s compared with today.

New Zealanders, whether for or against 1080, value their native forests and birdlife and support pest control. They only disagree on the methods. With agreement on the goal, surely the rest is just detail?

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Success rates have improved to over 95 per cent reductions in possum, rat and stoat numbers while the amount of bait used has dropped from 25kg of bait per hectare to 2-3kg per hectare. Spreading 2kg of pellet baits over a hectare is equivalent to dropping four baits on a doubles tennis court. With few baits per unit area, the risks of by-kill of non-target species is now much lower than before. Despite the high development and registration costs, work continues on new toxins. One acts on red blood cells to cut their ability to carry oxygen around the body. Early research results suggest it may be an effective and humane toxin for stoat control. The most acceptable toxin is one that is cheap, humane and species specific – and effective. We do not have it yet, but it is a goal worth pursuing. I am less optimistic about biological controls being developed for the nasty pest trio of possums, rats and stoats – at least in the foreseeable future. After many millions of dollars, research on a biological control for possums has been stopped. Biological control did help to significantly reduce rabbit numbers after the illegal introduction of rabbit calicivirus. However, the effectiveness of the virus has weakened over time and those farmers who did little to complement it with conventional rabbit control now face high rabbit numbers again. The lesson is not to expect research to deliver a quick-fix silver bullet for our mammalian pest problems. ith further major improvements in traps and toxins, what bold visions might we dream and what barriers could get in our way? First, let’s think about even bigger islands from which pests might be eradicated. At 28,500ha, Great Barrier Island has rats, mice and feral cats, but no possums or mustelids. In a decade or two we may have a super, self-setting rodent trap that could

do the job. Perhaps a combination of next-generation anticoagulants and rolling lines of traps along the island could achieve what now seems impossible. After clearing the North Island’s largest offshore island of predators, a bigger challenge would be clearing Stewart Island of predators. Imagine the translocation options that would open up. Rakiura National Park would be home to the many surplus kakapo from Codfish Island, along with lots of kokako, kaka and other threatened species from other managed areas. Before long, the restored dawn chorus and local increase in kiwi numbers would draw visitors to Stewart Island from New Zealand and beyond. Study a map of New Zealand, and its geography suggests other audacious visions. How about using the urban sprawl and squeezed neck of Auckland as a barrier and clear the farmlands and forests from there to Cape Reinga of possums and stoats? Northland is home to important kiwi populations and most of these are on private, not conservation lands. Given the threats to wild kiwi populations throughout New Zealand, this could provide safe areas at a new order of magnitude for our national bird to thrive. Might Coromandel Peninsula and the bulge of Taranaki, both important areas for biodiversity, also be capable of effective “isolation” followed by intensive knockdown or eradication of major pests?

2 Rats killed off three species on Big South Cape Island, off Stewart Island, in the early 1960s. Photo: Rod Morris 3 South Island saddlebacks on Big South Cape were saved from extinction after they were moved to rat-free islands. Photo: Rod Morris 4 Stead’s bush wren, which became extinct in the early 1960s. Photo: Don Merton/DOC 5 A ship rat making a meal of a kakariki. Photo: Rod Morris

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hinking about pest management only in an island context is too limiting for the larger systemic issues we face in New Zealand. First, most of our threatened biodiversity is in places where the island treatment is not feasible or is prohibitively expensive at present. Second, islands are “out there”, whereas we live “in here”, where competing political and social influences and attitudes are more complex. It is how we change our thinking about pest management “in here” that will support or stunt bold dreams for the future. I suggest this is the fundamentally important transformation we need, supported by ongoing technical advances that will be needed to realise such dreams. Several relevant factors underpin this transformation and they may change in ways that make it possible. These factors are: n Shifts in ecological thinking n Changes in values and engagement n New governance arrangements n Maori-Pakeha dialogues Ecological science has undergone an important shift in emphasis and perspective in the past two decades. The earlier belief that ecosystems naturally tend towards conditions of equilibrium has shifted to understanding ecosystems as dynamic systems, capable of rapid and unexpected changes. This is particularly true in New Zealand with our geological instabilities, exposure to cyclones, droughts and floods, now overlaid with the diverse impacts of introduced plants and animals. Management and biodiversity policies based on equilibrium assumptions

How about using the urban sprawl and squeezed neck of Auckland as a barrier and clear the farmlands and forests from there to Cape Reinga of possums and stoats?

7 40

can be inappropriate for dynamic and unpredictable systems. Understanding dynamic systems requires a greater knowledge of ecological processes and how key species respond to change. For example, discovering that kereru play a major role in the dispersal of forest seeds and therefore in the regeneration of forest ecosystems means their management is as relevant to maintaining the overall health of forests as it is about conserving a species. Since our primary production industries and tourism ultimately rely on the health of our biodiversity, greater research effort into understanding these ecosystem dynamics to improve their management would be a smart investment. As David Young describes in Our Islands, Our Selves, attitudes to conservation change over time, reflecting and shaping broader social values. Walter Buller’s Eurocentric and pessimistic views on “inferior” native species and their likely demise have long since been marginalised. New Zealanders increasingly value indigenous plants and animals. The rapid growth in the number of community groups dedicated to looking after local reserves, protecting breeding sites, starting restoration projects, restoring wetlands or opposing environmentally destructive practices attests to this. Changing social values towards native biodiversity are occurring at a time when traditional arrangements of hierarchical government are being questioned and contested. The dominant model of top-down, governmentled, expert-driven policies and practices is increasingly challenged across areas as diverse as agriculture, transport, energy, health, climate change and conservation management. These global trends reflect the increasing complexity of socio-environmental problems and the unprecedented ability of civil society to access and share knowledge and information, something governments used to control and regulate to a far greater extent than now. As a consequence, new approaches to governance are being tried that are more flexible, adaptive and responsive to stakeholder values and interests than is possible under

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9 older hierarchical structures. These developments are particularly relevant for adaptive management approaches which, in turn, are appropriate for studying dynamic systems. The success of adaptive management requires new ways for management agencies, stakeholders, interest groups and researchers to work together, including on pest control, such as deer or possum issues. By doing so, different voices can be heard and reflected in management goals. As the late Geoff Park has written: “Good management will require public dialogue as much as expert opinion because the definition of goals and development of scientific understanding is an interactive and experimental process.” Management staff, scientists and communities have already shown that these new approaches can succeed. Even the contentious issue of aerial use of 1080 has been worked through in some places with the input of all parties to arrive at acceptable solutions. If the will is there on all sides, solutions can be found. New Zealanders, whether for or against 1080, value their native forests and birdlife and support pest control. They only disagree on the methods. With agreement on the goal, surely the rest is just detail? have left the impact of Maori-Pakeha dialogues to last, not because it is least important but because the other influences I have discussed all provide the context within which Maori-Pakeha dialogues on conservation, including pest management, are best considered. In the opening article in this series (Forest & Bird, November 2010), David Young proposed that Forest & Bird would need “to step up to a new level of relationship with iwi and hapu”, noting that the Waitangi Tribunal’s Wai 262 report on the claim on indigenous flora and fauna would provide an opportunity to do so. This report is due out this month and a constructive response will require more New Zealanders than just Forest & Bird to step up. I look forward to a dialogue on how Maori spiritual and cultural values, as well as their holistic concepts, such the principles of mauri, connectedness, ecological harmony, continuity and reciprocity can inform the way we approach ecological studies and pest management. A leading scholar, Mason Durie, has argued that these principles can be measured quantitatively even though they are often seen as spiritual. Durie also writes: “Essentially value is a function of relationships …” Pakeha relationships with Aotearoa and its wildlife will deepen as the centuries

pass and therefore Pakeha values will change along the way. We are ready for a dialogue that builds a better understanding of the connections between Maori and Pakeha values because that will provide a stronger basis for new governance arrangements and partnerships with Maori for conservation and pest management. The Wai 262 report may provide the stimulus for this to happen, but we should be planning it anyway. Some may view these developments with alarm. I see them as positive opportunities. In 2050, readers of Forest & Bird should be able to look back with pride on achievements since 2011: dramatic improvements in control technologies that enabled eradication of pests on a scale previously thought impossible; generous budgets to support biodiversity research and management on public and private land by governments that finally appreciated the economic sense of this as smart investments; many new partnerships and co-management arrangements between Maori, communities and agencies that are successfully managing for biodiversity and minimal pest impacts; a deafening dawn chorus when families greet the morning sun and renew their spirits in their local forest, wherever that may be. 6 Rats were eliminated from 170ha Breaksea Island, in Fiordland, in 1988. Photo: Don Merton/DOC 7 North Island robins thrive in Bushy Park fenced sanctuary, thanks to a lack of pests. Photo: Aalbert Rebergen 8 A preserved specimen of the now extinct greater short-tailed bat. Photo: Rod Morris 9 Rats feeding on eggs in a nest. Photo: Nga Manu Images

Wren Green researched possums for the Forest Research Institute before joining the Department of Conservation in 1987. He has been consulting since 1997 in areas including biodiversity, biosecurity, sustainable development, science policy and climate change.

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Who’s in your garden?

New Zealand

Aotearoa

GARDEN BIRD

SURVEY 2011 25 June - 3 July Landcare Research and Forest & Bird are asking for the public’s help again this year in spotting birds in New Zealand gardens. Taking part is easy – spend just 1 hour (that’s 1 hour only) anytime between 25 June and 3 July looking for birds in your garden, parks or school grounds, and record the largest number of each species you see (or hear) at any one time. Please count not just tick the species you observe. The easy to follow guide below will help you identify most birds you are likely to see. Then fill in and return the survey form overleaf or enter your results online (which helps us to process the results faster and more easily) at: www.landcareresearch.co.nz/research/biocons/ gardenbird/

Photographs by: Andrew Walmsley Tom Marshall Craig MacKenzie Brian Massa Roger South www.istock.com

Bird Guide

Regularly updated survey results will be available on the same website, and will provide valuable information about bird populations, giving scientists an indication of which species may be in decline, helping guide conservation efforts for the future.

(not to scale) Small birds 15cm or less

Medium-sized birds Up to 30cm

Large birds Over 30cm

House Sparrow (m)

House Sparrow (f)

Yellowhammer (m)

Yellowhammer (f)

Eastern Rosella

Tui

Kereru

Greenfinch (m)

Greenfinch (f)

Goldfinch

Dunnock

Song Thrush

Bellbird

Magpie

Chaffinch (m)

Chaffinch (f)

Redpoll

Fantail

Myna

Starling

Red-billed Gull

Silvereye

Welcome Swallow

Grey Warbler

Blackbird (f)

Blackbird (m)

Black-backed Gull

Mr, Mrs, Ms, Miss, Master (circle)

Children (<18)

Urban Park

Rural Park

Please note: we will not give or sell your details to anyone else, we require them so we can contact you if necessary to clarify your results. If you prefer us not to contact you again, please tick here

Tel

Postcode

Town/City

Number and street

Surname

First name

Contact Details

Adults

Rural School

Rural garden

How many took part?

Urban School

Urban garden

Description of survey area (please tick one)

Postcode

Region

Town/City

Suburb

Number & Street

Physical address where you did the survey:

Survey Details

Please re-fold leaflet and tape along edge before posting

Fix Stamp here

Eric Spurr New Zealand Garden Bird Survey 145 Ashley St Rangiora 7400

Time

Myna Red-billed Gull Rock Pigeon Rosella (Eastern) Silvereye Song Thrush Starling Tui Welcome Swallow Yellowhammer

Black-backed Gull Chaffinch Dunnock Fantail Goldfinch Greenfinch Grey Warbler House Sparrow Kereru

Fruit

Seeds

Yes

Bread

Yes

Other (please describe)

Sugar-water

Does your survey area include an area where you feed birds? (please tick)

Fat

If yes, what? (please tick)

Do you feed birds? (please tick)

Other birds seen during the hour (species and number)

Magpie

Bellbird Blackbird

Record the highest number of each species seen (or heard) at once during the hour â&#x20AC;&#x201C; NOT the total number over the hour â&#x20AC;&#x201C; do not enter zeros

Date of Survey

Please do the survey for 1 hour only, between 25 June and 3 July 2011

DONâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;T KILL A KIWI ICON. SAVE THE MACKENZIE COUNTRY

The Mackenzie is under threat from intensive farming and other development. Take action at savethemackenzie.org.nz

rangatahi our future

Rounded view of rivers H

arriet Roil loves water – rivers, lakes and oceans. As a passionate kayaker, she’s drawn to water for adventure, fun and relaxation. And she values our waterways so much that she wants to protect them from pollution and development. She started kayaking in 2009 when studying outdoor recreation at Christchurch Polytech, and she’s now in her second year of a Bachelor of Science in biology and environmental science at Canterbury University. Harriet, 20, admires waterways in all their shapes and shades, from the icy-blue of a South Island glacierfed river to the dirt-brown of a gorged torrent in flood. She’s kayaked several Canterbury and West Coast rivers, including the Hurunui, the Ashley and the Kakapotahi, and been a raft guide on the Rangitikei River in the North Island. “I really love kayaking because I love how you can go to such remote areas,” she says. Her regular whoops of laughter stop when she begins talking about the declining state of rivers as polluting farm animals and chemicals, didymo and algal blooms take their toll. Harriet grew up on a Hawke’s Bay sheep and beef farm so her love of rivers springs from a lifetime learning about nature. “I come from a farming background and I see things in a different way. I see both sides of the story. I think farmers need to be aware of the problems.” After working on dairy farms in Hawke’s Bay and the Waikato, she knows firsthand the problems that dairying can create for rivers, with large amounts of water needed for irrigation, and animal effluent and nitrates from fertilisers running into waterways. “I understand that we need to take some water for farming from the rivers but I think we need to be careful about the systems we put in place because these rivers need to be sustained long term. We need to be strict about the water given out to farmers. Maybe we need to think about where farming intensification happens.” The West Coast’s wild Mokihinui River – on which Meridian wants to build an 85-metre-high dam – is special to this kayaker. “I do understand that we need more power but we need to think about the consequences of damming a river. Once you’ve dammed it, you can’t get it back. I think it’s obvious we should use the Stockton mine proposal – it’s better.” This alternative hydro project would use water draining from the Stockton mine, generating electricity and improving

water quality at the same time. “Conservation is more in your face when you’re outdoors,” she observes. “Through kayaking, I have a connection with the rivers. It’s easier for someone in an office to say let’s have a wall or a mine.” Last year, Harriet took a biodiversity and conservation paper, covering threats to native fish and eels, which opened her eyes to the problems for creatures living in rivers. “We have endangered freshwater fish and we still allow whitebaiting. Probably the fishers don’t even know what they’re catching. Maybe the season needs shortening or we need an awareness campaign about whitebait,” she suggests. Harriet is a Forest & Bird member – “I joined because I’m interested in the projects that Forest & Bird does and the volunteer programmes.” Last November, she joined a Heritage Expeditions trip to the sub-Antarctic islands on an Enderby Trust scholarship. She gained insights into some of the environmental science topics she has studied, for instance the way plants have evolved to cope with climate and the Harriet Roil kayaking on Hawke’s Bay’s interactions between Tutaekuri River. Photo: Sam Roil different species. Her trip has increased her awareness of New Zealand’s fisheries and over-fishing. She has a better understanding of the threats to endangered New Zealand sea lions from the squid fishing industry after watching them on the beaches of the Auckland Islands and Campbell Island and learning about their declining numbers. Once Harriet graduates, she’d like to work in conservation – “something that will make a change and a big difference to New Zealand”. n Marina Skinner

I do understand that we need more power but I think we need to think about the consequences of damming a river. Once you’ve dammed it, you can’t get it back. Harriet Roil

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Petrels with a fighting chance

The Westland petrel is one of our only petrels that hasn’t been driven off the mainland by introduced pests. By David Brooks.

he rare and still rather mysterious Westland petrel, or täiko, is a hidden gem of our native birdlife, according to scientist Susan Waugh, who first studied the wide-ranging seabird in 2000. Dr Waugh has resumed research on the large petrel in the past couple of years while working for Forest & Bird, and finds plenty to admire in a species that breeds in rugged bush country in the hills around the Punakaiki area of the West Coast. It is one of the few petrels that still nests on mainland New Zealand, with most others retreating to offshore islands to avoid introduced pests. “I’m intrigued they have survived on the New Zealand mainland despite all the pests that are around them, such as possums and stoats. There is also a reported problem with dogs in that area,” Dr Waugh says. “They do seem to be quite aggressive birds compared to others I’ve dealt with, so it’s probably why they are still there, because they can resist attacks by stoats and some of the other pests.”

Dr Waugh wears gloves before investigating the underground burrows where they nest. “When you work with them one on one you get to know their individual quirks; there’s a few nests I dread.” She has been making regular trips to Punakaiki with her husband, Dominique Filippi, who has developed burrowscopes for looking into nests and logging devices, will be attached to birds this year to check their range at sea and see how they overlap with commercial fishing areas. In the non-breeding season, the birds range as far as the waters off Chile on the other side of the Pacific in the search for food. Commercial fishing is one of the key threats to the petrels, which are known to scavenge around fishing boats, risking capture in nets and other fishing gear. The Westland petrel was only confirmed as a separate species in the 1940s after a group from Barrytown School noticed the birds were nesting in May, rather than in November like many other species. An estimated 4,000 breeding birds return each year to colonies spread over 16,000 hectares at Punakaiki, the species’ only known breeding area. The state of the petrel’s population is not clear, though the number of empty nests in the breeding colonies concerns Dr Waugh. The birds don’t start breeding until between five and eight years old and can live for at least 25 years, and perhaps longer. Dr Waugh has recently joined Te Papa Tongarewa, the national museum, and plans to continue her study of the Westland petrel. “I’d like to know if the population is stable or increasing and the bottom line is whether they are actually in a healthy state. We still don’t know and it will take us another five years to find out. I would like to know what the threats are that most affect them.” 1 The Westland black petrel was identified in the 1940s after school children studied it. Photo: Craig Robertson/DOC 2 Ian Davidson-Watts of the Grey District Council and Susan Waugh with a Westland petrel. Photo: Dominique Filippi

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Discover your own backyard

Join the Kiwi Conservation Club Kiwi kids learning about and exploring New Zealandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wild life and wild places. Get five issues of our magazine Wild Things from just $19 a year. Join us at www.kcc.org.nz

Both sides of

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| Forest & Bird

The pioneering Zealandia-Karori Sanctuary in Wellington and the much larger Maungatautari Ecological Island in Waikato have blazed a trail for fenced sanctuaries. But some people question their value for money when conservation dollars are scarce. By David Brooks.

ver the past decade there has been a rush of enthusiasm for fenced sanctuaries as a chance to offer a glimpse – albeit an incomplete one – of what New Zealand’s mainland environment was like before the destruction caused by introduced pests. Fenced sanctuaries can eradicate almost all introduced predators from an area, allowing the return of native birds and other wildlife missing from the mainland for many decades. But they have struggled financially and arguably sucked up funds that could have been used in more costeffective conservation work. The excitement generated by projects like Zealandia and Maungatautari has generated proposals from other community groups for similar but usually smaller projects. The enthusiasts involved have not always appreciated the huge investment in money and sweat required to make these projects work. Pest-free offshore islands have been the last refuge for many of our most endangered species but access to many

n an article scheduled for publication in the June edition of the New Zealand Journal of Ecology, Canterbury Museum Curator of Vertebrate Zoology Paul Scofield and Resource Economics Professor Ross Cullen and Maggie Wang, both of Lincoln University, argue that fenced sanctuaries offer poor value for money compared with other pest control regimes aimed at saving endangered species. According to their study, there were at the end of 2006 a total of 18 completed or nearly completed fenced or partly fenced sanctuaries. These included small areas aimed at protecting individual species such as Chatham Island black robins or skinks as well as eight fenced sanctuaries of 100ha or more aimed at protecting multiple species. These 18 sanctuaries had a total of 109 kilometres of fencing protecting 7,133ha of habitat. The overall capital cost to the end of 2006 of these fences exceeded $24 million plus an estimated annual depreciation cost of $800,000 to reflect an estimated lifespan for the fences of 25 years, the study says.

the fence is restricted or difficult for people wanting to see these native treasures. In the 1990s and early 2000s some bold thinkers suggested if we built fences and eradicated the pests within them, we could bring species such as saddlebacks (tieke), kaka, hihi, giant weta and tuatara to the Wellington suburbs or the middle of Waikato dairying country. The pioneer was Karori Sanctuary, since renamed Zealandia, where 225 hectares – mostly of regenerating bush – was fenced and 14 pest mammal species eradicated by January 2000. A total of 47 threatened native plant and animal species have since been reintroduced. Little spotted kiwi, North Island saddlebacks, hihi, tuatara and Maud Island frogs have been returned to a natural mainland site for the first time. “Being in the suburbs, we would not have been able to achieve what we have achieved if we were an unfenced project. We have animals that are here solely because we have a fence that keeps out pests,” Karori Sanctuary Trust Conservation Manager Raewyn Empson says. 1 Zealandia-Karori Sanctuary, the pioneer of fenced sanctuaries, is nestled in Wellington’s suburbs. Photo: Rob Suisted. 2 A tuatara at Zealandia, the first natural site on New Zealand’s mainland to reintroduce the reptiles. Photo: David Brooks.

Scofield and his colleagues quoted figures from an earlier study on kokako protection showing professional trapping and baiting protection work for these birds cost $115 to $155 a hectare annually. Mainland islands – large open Department of Conservation reserves with intensive professional pest control – have annualised costs per hectare of $11 to $96. For fenced sanctuaries the mean cost per hectare was calculated at $3,365 a hectare in the latest study. “We believe that the rate of growth in predator-proof fence building is out of proportion to its benefits,” the authors say. “We consider that in many cases the creation of sanctuaries enclosed by predator-proof fences is little more than the creation of expensive zoos surrounded by degraded habitat that will never be able to sustain the animal and plant species contained within the fence.” The most imposing project so far is Maungatautari, where more than $20 million has been spent – with volunteer labour worth another estimated $10 million – since the project was launched in 2001 to enclose nearly 3,400ha within a 47km fence. As well as financial strains, Maungatautari has recently been engulfed in a dispute over its governance structure, in which some local landowners have refused to allow the sanctuary’s staff and volunteers access to sections of the fence on their land.

3 A takahe at Maungatautari Ecological Island. Photo: David Brooks.

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Forest & Bird Advocacy Manager Kevin Hackwell says the conservation focus of a fenced sanctuary can be obscured by the financial strains. “They have to keep raising money for maintenance and that keeps a lot of the focus of the sanctuary’s governors on raising money rather than having a focus on conservation.” Building a fence does not mean the managers can forget about pests. “The actual effort in people power, going up and down the tracks doing the work is very similar whether you have a fence or not,” Hackwell says. Mice remain a problem in fenced sanctuaries and there is a constant threat of the fence being breached by fallen trees or branches. Birds sometimes carry smaller pests into a sanctuary and weasels have twice been found inside Zealandia. Fenced projects such as Zealandia and Maungatautari have attracted new donors to conservation but Scofield and Hackwell argue their financial problems inevitably suck up public money, through local or central government. “I’m not aware of any of these big projects that haven’t had an absolute funding crisis and inevitably they end up turning to central and local government to rescue them. Significant amounts of public money go into this and that money is lost to other conservation work,” Hackwell says.

n unfenced sanctuary offers more flexibility, especially if it lies within a wider expanse of bush. Trapping and baiting regimes can be expanded or moved, whereas a fenced sanctuary remains defined by the area within the fence, though Empson points out Zealandia and some other fenced sanctuaries have pest control work going on outside their fences. Forest & Bird and Auckland Council’s Ark in the Park open sanctuary in the Waitakere Ranges has expanded its core area to about 2,000ha from an original 250ha pilot area when the project started in 2003. Further pest control work is done in buffer areas around the core. When kokako released at the Ark during the past two years moved into bush outside the managed area, trapping and baiting was expanded into the birds’ new home, Ark Project Manager Maj De Poorter says. The result over the past summer was the first successful hatching of kokako chicks in the Waitakeres for more than 80 years. 4 The Ark in the Park open sanctuary in Auckland’s Waitakere Ranges. Photo: Dave Pattemore. 5 Kaka are flourishing at Zealandia and have become a common sight in neighbouring suburbs. Photo: David Brooks. 6 One of the three kokako chicks born at Ark in the Park over the last summer. Photo: Andy Warneford. 7 A hihi feeding a chick at Ark in the Park. Photo: Laurence Bechet.

[Fenced sanctuaries] have to keep raising money for maintenance and that keeps a lot of the focus of the sanctuary’s governors on raising money rather than having a focus on conservation. Forest & Bird Advocacy Manager Kevin Hackwell

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mpson and Maungatautari Ecologist Chris Smuts-Kennedy agree fenced sanctuaries are more expensive and only one part of the overall conservation effort, but they say their goals are wider than pure conservation. “It just depends on how much value people put on going to a place like Maungatautari or Karori and being able to see things they may not be able to see in a bait station or 1080 operation,” Smuts-Kennedy says. “Your shopping list for reintroducing species is so much shorter if you are relying on a bait station operation rather than a fence.” Some species are more vulnerable to even low numbers of pests and efforts to reintroduce saddlebacks to DOC’s Boundary Stream mainland island in Hawke’s Bay appear to have failed and hihi have struggled at the Ark in the Park. Maungatautari has ambitions to eventually become the first mainland site to reintroduce kakapo, and Smuts-Kennedy says this bold step could only be contemplated at his sanctuary because of its size and absence of predators. 7

YOU CAN’T CUT DOWN A FAMILY TREE LEAVE A GIFT IN YOUR WILL THAT WILL LAST FOREVER

A gift in your will can help make sure our native trees will be here for generations. Help us continue the work of protecting and nurturing all our indigenous animals and plants for many years to come. Bequests can be made to “Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Incorporated”. For a copy of our bequest brochure or to discuss leaving a gift in your will, please contact fundraiser Jolene Molloy. • 0800 200 064 • j.molloy@forestandbird.org.nz • PO Box 631, Wellington, 6140 • www.forestandbird.org.nz

Help give nature a voice. Help Forest & Bird

ven those who question the conservation value of fenced sanctuaries acknowledge they have an important role in educating and inspiring New Zealanders and visitors about our native wildlife. But all those spoken to for this article agree that the rush of enthusiasm for fenced sanctuaries in the past decade has spawned several unrealistic proposals. “There was a danger following our success at Karori that everyone wanted to get on the bandwagon,” Empson says. “I think all the local communities were saying we want one here. But there were not enough reality checks to ask ‘Is this the right place for it? Is this going to be big enough to do what you want to do?’ Another thing that was often underestimated was the ongoing costs for these projects.” Supporters of fenced sanctuaries say it is too early to make a judgement on their value because of their relatively short existence. “It’s a big experiment but really worthwhile,” says Landcare Research scientist John Innes. “I want to see the few that exist sustained and the monitoring of them done so they can be evaluated. It seems really silly to argue them down before the results are known.” 9

Everyone agrees there is no simple, single answer to achieving our conservation goals. “Any idea that there will be an alternative to bloody hard work is just false. In conservation there is no magical answer to any problem you have,” Scofield says.

We would not have been able to achieve what we have achieved if we were an unfenced project. We have animals that are here solely because we have a fence that keeps out pests. Karori Sanctuary Trust Conservation Manager Raewyn Empson. Photo: Tom Lynch

8 Maungatautari Ecologist Chris Smuts-Kennedy (second left) at a release of hihi at the sanctuary. Photo: Phil Brown. 9 The predator fence at Maungatautari. Photo: David Brooks.

Tell us where you sit What do you think about fenced sanctuaries? Are they a good showcase for our most endangered native creatures? Who should pay for them? Is intensive pest control in unfenced areas a better long-term way of conserving native ecosystems? What’s best for the future? Send your comments to: Marina Skinner, Editor, Forest & Bird, PO Box 631, Wellington 6140 or email m.skinner@forestandbird.org.nz

| Forest & Bird

going places

No place

for humans

Early-flowering megaherbs on the slopes of Mt Honey. Photo: Gunther Riehle

Despite our forebears’ best efforts to turn sub-Antarctic Campbell Island into an English outpost, it remains a wild and weathered land. By Marina Skinner.

wind from Antarctica drives snow sideways at our faces. We keep our heads low and concentrate on gripping the ropes strung along the rubber Zodiac’s edges. The little boat bounces across the choppy waters of Perseverance Harbour from our expedition ship into more sheltered Garden Cove, where a New Zealand sea lion welcomes us to his gravelly beach. A southerly change on Campbell Island – even in early summer – allows us to see the vivid colours of the flowering megaherbs in sharp contrast with a snowy backdrop. We crunch through snow on the climb up 569-metre Mt Honey, the island’s highest point, until we are beaten back by the terrifying wind. The albatrosses huddle low in their nests scattered across the tussock. A day earlier, Campbell Island showed us its sunny side when we landed at a small wharf, once used by the Met Service base at the end of the deep Perseverance Harbour. Most ship passengers climbed the boardwalk through dracophyllum and megaherbs to Col Lyall, an exposed ridge on the western edge of the island. Here, southern royal albatrosses glide in the air currents above and nest among the tussock – a nature photographer’s nirvana. The rest of us headed west, following expedition leader Nathan Russ on a day-long circuit across the island

to Northwest Bay and back. The route was not always obvious to us but no problem for Nathan, who virtually had Campbell Island as his childhood playground while travelling with his father, Heritage Expeditions founder Rodney Russ. After a gentle climb to the blustery cliffs overlooking Northwest Bay and Dent Island, four kilometres away, we stopped to sit among the sunshine-yellow Bulbinella rossii and a few early-flowering lilac Anisotome latifolia, a heavyweight member of the carrot family. The island’s spectacular megaherbs and other plants are still recovering from the cattle and sheep that once grazed there. High cliffs along this coast are the sea-eroded edge of an ancient volcano, and albatrosses and petrels somehow find crannies for nests in the sheer rock walls. In the tussock above the limestone cliffs we passed close by nesting brown skuas – usually aggressive scavengers but displaying a softer side with their chicks. The skyline to the south is dominated by Mordor-like peaks, with magnificent rock clusters threatening to tumble from their bizarre resting places. We bush-bashed down a gully to a rocky beach, surprising a solitary and shy yellow-eyed penguin. Campbell Island is the main breeding ground for this species, one of the world’s rarest. After waiting respectfully Forest & Bird

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for the penguin to move away, we got a few paces along the tiny beach before coming face to face with New Zealand sea lions. An older bull was content to let us pass along the shore but a mischievous teenage male saw the chance for some sparring. Nathan stood guard as the rest of us squeezed between the cliff boulders and a mouthful of teeth and fishy breath. Following a trail past pipits and through 3-4 metre tall dracophyllum forest, we emerged at North West Hut, an old DOC refuge, and ate lunch in the sheltered pockets between tussock and fern clumps. On the gentle slope behind the hut, we sidestepped a number of lone sea lions, some of which had lumbered up to a kilometre from the coast. Along the open hill face, tussocks, ferns and clumps of sphagnum moss and lichens drape the rocks. The new blooms of the purple-pink Pleurophyllum speciosum daisy and vivid blue Hebe benthamii were too precious to crush with our boots, though we took slightly less care with the prolific yellow Bulbinella rossii. Six species of albatross breed on the island, with magnificent southern royal albatrosses the easiest to spot. Campbell Island is their main breeding ground, and we visited at the right time to see many birds sitting on nests among the tussock. We stopped for 40 minutes to observe a smooching couple obviously delighted to see each other. It seemed almost an invasion of privacy to photograph and video their courtship but they ignored us and our cameras. Down the long arm of Perseverance Harbour, we could see our ship at anchor – a comforting sight after a day in a weather-battered landscape. A curious and very friendly sea lion greeted us at Camp Cove and watched us until our Zodiac arrived. At the cove is a Sitka spruce, planted a century ago by Governor Ranfurly – the only true tree among the island’s shrubs that lie low to beat the wind. It’s dubbed the world’s loneliest tree, and it’s a reminder 2

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that interlopers, like us, really have no place in this far southern outpost. Sealers, whalers, naturalists and farmers, World War II coastwatchers and meteorologists have all tried to make a home on Campbell Island. In the end, the brutal climate and isolation defeated them all. It’s no place for humans but for the plants and animals adapted to life here, it’s a perfect home. I hope they can fully reclaim their rightful place. Marina Skinner travelled to Campbell Island thanks to Heritage Expeditions.

Good riddance to rats In 2001, the Department of Conservation launched an operation to rid Campbell Island of Norway rats, which – along with other introduced pests – had wiped out all native land birds and most smaller seabirds on the main island. At the time, it was the most ambitious rat-eradication project carried out in the world. During one month that winter, helicopters spread 120 tonnes of Brodifacoum-laced cereal bait over the island. After thorough checks in 2005, the island was declared rat-free. The island’s plants and animals are gradually recovering from the ravages of 200 years of rats, cats, sheep, goats and cattle. The flightless Campbell Island teal – once the world’s rarest duck – was rediscovered on nearby rat-free Dent Island in the mid-1970s. It has been returned to the main Campbell Island and is doing well, along with pipits and snipes, which also previously survived on offshore islands without rats.

Getting there Where: Campbell Island is 700 kilometres south of New Zealand

CAMPBELL ISLAND

Cruises: Heritage Expeditions has several trips of varying durations to the sub-Antarctic islands – all including Campbell Island – during summer. Take: Sea sickness medication, since the Southern Ocean is not known for being placid. Scopoderm skin patches are recommended. Gumboots to keep your feet dry getting in and out of the rigid inflatable boats (Zodiacs).

Amazing facts about…

More information: http://heritage-expeditions.com

VEGETABLE CATERPILLARS

2 Pleurophyllum speciosum. Photo: Jenny Thynne 3 Brilliant yellow Bulbinella rossii are scattered all across Campbell Island. Photo: Gunther Riehle 4 Southern royal albatrosses. Photo: Gunther Riehle 5 A southern royal albatross hunkers down on a cold summer’s day. Photo: Gunther Riehle

By Ann Graeme

Photo: Rod Morris

eath In the natural world is often violent and bloody, but the fate of the vegetable caterpillar is so bizarre that it could inspire a horror movie. This is the scenario. The ghost moth caterpillar lives in native forest. During the day it stays in its burrow in the ground but as night falls it comes out to feed amongst the forest litter. As it munches a fallen leaf it does not realise that it is swallowing a spore of the Cordyceps fungus. The spore lodges in its gut and begins to grow. The thread-like mycelium (the vegetative part of the fungus) digests the living caterpillar tissue, replacing it with fungal tissue in an exact replica of the caterpillar form. Slowly the caterpillar becomes packed with woody fungus. It is turning into a vegetable caterpillar. The mycelium spreads through the caterpillar and – here is the Machiavellian twist – it leaves the head until last. This means the caterpillar does not decay but remains alive and, until the head is consumed, provides living tissue for the fungus to feed on. The caterpillar, perhaps feeling a little wonky, retires into its burrow. When the mycelium has entirely filled the caterpillar body, a stalk bursts out of the corpse’s head. It grows upwards to rise six or seven centimetres above the forest floor. This is the fruiting body of the fungus and it looks like a thickened sparkler with the spores clustered about the burnt tip. They will mature and blow away, and some will be eaten by another luckless caterpillar. To see a video of Ann Graeme uncovering a vegetable caterpillar, see www.youtube.com/forestandbird Forest & Bird

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in the field

Flying under Moths are the masters of our night skies.

oths are the poor cousins of butterflies. We notice and admire butterflies, flitting about on their gaudy wings in the sunlight, but we tend to overlook the secretive moths of the night. What a world we are missing! Butterflies may be more colourful but moths have a subtle beauty all their own. New Zealand has 1684 named species of native moths and perhaps another 200 yet to be named. We have far fewer butterflies – just 15 natives and another seven, including the monarch and cabbage white, which are not native but live and breed here. Moths and butterflies are the adults of their species. Like all adults, they are preoccupied with sex for to them falls the responsibility of procreating their species. To do this they must find a partner – and stay out of the clutches of predators like hungry birds. Staying safe involves various strategies. You can advertise that you are inedible – like the monarch butterfly – you can come out at night; or you can adopt a disguise. Moths favour the darkness and they are champions at daytime disguise. But in disguise and in the dark of night, it could be difficult to find your partner. Moths may not see very well but they have an extraordinary sense of smell – not through their noses, of course, since invertebrates don’t have noses, but through their antennae. A TV antenna has many stalks and struts to increase its receptive area. For the same reason, the moth’s antenna is branched and feathered, especially the male’s because he has to find his partner. She will emit a chemical pheromone to lure him. So potent is her scent and so perceptive are his antennae that he will smell her from several kilometres away! All this sex and distance flying takes energy, and moths refuel by sipping the nectar of flowers. Native moths are adapted to feeding from native flowers and act as important agents for their pollination. White is the most visible colour at night so many of our insect-pollinated native plants have white flowers. They are often strongly 56

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scented, and their scent may become even more powerful after dark and in the damp night air. But if the purpose of an adult moth is sex, the priority of its caterpillar is food. This is a remarkable division of labour – a triumph of form matching function. While an adult moth is a flying sex machine, its caterpillar is a stomach-on-legs. The caterpillar will eat and eat and eat … until it has stored sufficient energy to become a pupa, where its caterpillar tissue will be reassembled into an adult. Caterpillars eat vegetable matter including leaves, flowers, stems, wood, forest litter, lichens and fungi. Some feed on a wide variety of different plants but most species are very choosy. There are a number of tiny moths known as leaf miners. Their caterpillars don’t chew ragged holes but make tunnels inside the leaf. The astelia leaf miner caterpillar lives underground in the bulb of the astelia plant. It chews its tunnels in the soft green tissue of the growing leaves before they emerge above ground. Long after the caterpillar has pupated and hatched into a moth, the evidence of its work remains. Above ground, the old tunnels leave zigzag patterns on the leaf, widening in geometric precision as the leaf lengthens. Some plants host several species of leaf miner caterpillars and an experienced lepidopterist can identify them from the distinctive shape of their tunnel. Being fussy about the plants they eat means different species of caterpillar occupy discrete niches and do not compete with one another. Even when species share the same food plant, by eating different parts of it in different ways they still avoid competition and so the range of niches is extended even further. This explains how our forest and alpine shrublands can support such a huge diversity of native moth species. Two species eat only flax leaves. The flax notcher caterpillar eats notches out of the leaf margin. The flax looper caterpillar

the radar By Ann Graeme.

eats windows in the leaf, closer to the mid-vein, so the feeding territories of each species don’t overlap. This is good for the moth species as their caterpillars don’t compete for food – but hard on the flax leaves! The largest family of moths in New Zealand is the Geometridae, with more than 285 species. Their caterpillars have true legs at the front, false or pro-legs at the back and a long, unsupported body in between. They move by stretching out the body and then drawing it into an omega-shaped loop Ω. Americans call them inchworms as they seem to measure the twig they are walking on. We call them loopers. Species of looper caterpillars eat a wide variety of native plants including many different ferns. The zigzag fern looper eats the common shield fern, the silver fern looper eats silver ferns and the pale fern looper is cosmopolitan, eating silver fern, soft tree fern, prickly shield fern, maidenhair ferns and more. These moths and their caterpillars are all part of the intricate biodiversity of our native ecosystems. They make little impact on our lives, unlike some introduced moths which are much less welcome. The caterpillars of the codlin moth ruin our apples and those of the Indian meal moth make a nasty surprise in the foodstuffs in our pantries. But we can use these moths’ own weapons against them. A sticky card baited with the particular moth pheromone will lure each of these pests to their deaths, a gruesome but effective strategy. But don’t let them prejudice you against moths. We have a glorious array of endemic, attractive and interesting species and they are well worth a second look. Forest & Bird North Shore branch chairperson Alan Emmerson gave extensive assistance with this article. With Robert Hoare and Birgit Rhode of Landcare Research, Alan is preparing a comprehensive guide to the larger moths of New Zealand. It will be available as a book and online. See www.landcareresearch.co.nz

Tiny scales However carefully you pick up a moth, it will leave a dusty imprint on your fingers. These are its scales, which cover its wings and body like tiles on a roof, giving it colour and pattern and sparkle. Butterflies and moths are the only insects covered like this, and it gives them their family name, Lepidoptera, which means “scaly wings”.

World of difference Butterflies and moths are not that simple to tell apart. General points of difference are: n All butterflies fly by day; most moths fly by night. n Butterflies always have slender antennae with a knob on the end. Moth antennae come in all shapes and sizes, often bushy and branched or feathery, but some moths have antennae like those of butterflies. n Most butterflies (and some moths) rest with their wings raised like sails. Most moths wrap their wings around their bodies, fold them like roofs or spread them out flat (as do some butterflies).

A tunnel made by an astelia leaf miner caterpillar. Photo: Ann Graeme

Photos: Birgit Rhode/Landcare Research

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one of us

The thin green line T

he West Coast. These three words fill your mind with images of wave-lashed rocks, moss-filled forests, torrential rain and geological curiosities. This wilderness with its frightening weather is not for everyone. Just 32,000 people live there. They are guardians of much of New Zealand’s remaining ecological wealth. The West Coast is home to five of our 14 national parks and almost 90 per cent of its land is managed by the Department of Conservation. Its waters are home to our endangered Hector’s dolphin. Okarito lagoon is the sole breeding ground for kotuku (white heron) in New Zealand. Its lush forest is the hunting ground for giant carnivorous snails and two types of kiwi. The rowi is locally endemic and, with a population of just 350, it’s New Zealand’s rarest kiwi. One of the watchdogs of this land is the chair of Forest & Bird’s West Coast branch, Kathy Gilbert. It’s quite a job. For the past 26 years, Kathy has been bending perceptions and gathering a small troupe of nature lovers. She is part of the thin green line working to promote environmental issues in an area where the views of industry and local government are not always sympathetic. The challenges are great but her character bears no resemblance to the West Coast’s wild, temperamental weather. Over the past six years, she has helped improve wetland protection on the West Coast, and she’s worked to protect the Coast from large hydro-electricity schemes, including the Mokihinui River, several DOC grazing leases, dirty dairying and mining. And she’s called for the establishment of more marine reserves along the West Coast – an area that is home to endangered Hector’s dolphins, orca whales and threatened sea birds such as the Westland petrel. After gaining a degree in physical and outdoor education from Otago University, Kathy answered the call of the wild and settled on the West Coast in 1974. Sixteen years later she set up New Zealand’s first one-year outdoor recreation polytechnic programme focusing on conservation, outdoor recreation and adventure tourism. “The West Coast economy has been dependent on boom and bust extractive industries. These are unsustainable. We need leaders with foresight to decide what is OK and what is not OK for the economic future of the region,” she says. “When logging stopped in South Westland, people changed their jobs. Humans are very adaptable and

Kathy Gilbert releases a rowi in Okarito Forest in October 2010. Photo: Ian Gill/DOC

we often forget that. We need to rethink the direction and priorities and not lose sight of the fact that we have a unique, irreplaceable environment. Innovation and technology are probably the key, as well as growth in ecotourism. We should have a conservation research centre for New Zealand based here.” One of Kathy’s most noteworthy traits is her patience. “You’ve got to understand why people have different views, and for many these can’t change overnight. But there are lots of people in the middle who come to understand the true value of this land, and one by one you’ve started to build a bulwark of people who are prepared to speak up for nature, at home and at work.” She prefers to step back from divisive entrenched arguments to offer a bigger picture. During heated discussions, Kathy retains a cool head. As a teenager and young adult, activism ran hot in her veins, and she opposed the “think big” schemes, hydro dams and clear-fell logging of the day. Since then she’s moved from the picket line to the court room. She meets regularly a gang of writers who fire off submissions to hold councils to account and try to get better protection of our magnificent natural heritage. “And it’s working,” she says. “We’ve got a small troop of locals who have complementary skills – writing, revegetating grazed streams and protecting endangered wildlife. We have to save the uniqueness of the West Coast.” n Mandy Herrick

We need to rethink the direction and priorities and not lose sight of the fact that we have a unique, irreplaceable environment. Kathy Gilbert

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community

conservation

Southlanders star in hoiho film A

t 4.30 on a clear morning a year ago, we emerged sleepy-eyed from our tents to begin two days of filming at Forest & Bird’s Te Rere Penguin Reserve by amateur filmmaker Wayne Birchall, with help from Moira Pagan, Brian and Chris Rance and Fergus Sutherland. The 20-minute film tells the 25-year history of the reserve, east of Invercargill, through the eyes of caretaker Fergus Sutherland. It includes the story of the devastating fire that swept through in 1995, the recovery from that day, and excellent footage of the charismatic penguins in their spectacular coastal habitat. Forest & Bird’s Southland branch members are stars with their replanting work – the winter working bees for volunteers with the exciting fourwheel-drive journey on slippery muddy roads against a backdrop of crashing seas. In April last year we had two clear sunny days on which to film. We shot the penguins coming in from a day’s fishing at sea, and going out early in the morning. We explored the Falls Creek waterfall, after which the Te Rere Penguin Reserve is named, and looked at the vast areas of native plantings and nesting areas that have gradually replaced the farmland. Forest & Bird bought Te Rere Penguin Reserve in 1988, after a group of conservationists negotiated for a small part of the area to be fenced off and protected as bulldozers cleared the surrounding native forest. This was a time of government subsidies to clear native forest for farmland. It later became clear that Te Rere contained the largest single colony of yellow-eyed penguins (hoiho) on the mainland of New Zealand. Since then, Southland branch members and supporters have made regular working trips from Invercargill to the reserve in the Catlins, planting up to 1000 native plants a year

and undertaking pest control. In 1995, a disastrous fire swept through the reserve, burning much of the coastal habitat and killing many penguins. But out of the ashes grew even greater resolve and now the project is one of the most successful and longest-running restoration projects in Southland. During recent years, neighbouring farmers Maurice and Maree Yorke have covenanted many areas of native forest on their farm, adding to the diversity of the Te Rere landscape. Last November, caretaker Fergus Sutherland found nesting sooty shearwaters, or titi, at the reserve. The film acknowledges the many volunteers who have helped, and is dedicated to Ronald Ericson, a local farmer and passionate conservationist who spent many long hours planting at Te Rere. Visitors are encouraged to join one of the four work days a year at the reserve (in July, August, October and December) organised by Southland Branch. Te Rere is a low disturbance site with access through private land. There are many other areas in the Catlins to see yellow-eyed penguins – at Te Rere we leave them largely undisturbed. Southland branch is indebted to film-maker and narrator Wayne Birchall for giving us a marvellous history of this great conservation project. Wayne, an ophthalmologist, lived in Invercargill at the time the film was made, and has moved to Whangarei with his wife Moira. The original music for the film was written by Moira’s brother, John Pagan. Moira spent many hours during the filming days sketching the spectacular scenery, and her artwork provides another valuable record of the reserve. n Chris Rance 2

Te Rere – Restoring the Home of the Hoiho is for sale at Forest & Bird’s shop – www.forestandbird.org.nz – for $25, including postage and packing, or can be ordered at Forest & Bird Southland branch, PO Box 1155, Invercargill 9840. Proceeds will be used for work at the reserve.

1 The dramatic coastline at Te Rere. 2 The Te Rere film crew, from left, Moira Pagan, Wayne Birchall, Chris and Brian Rance. 3 A yellow-eyed penguin at Te Rere Penguin Reserve. Photo: Fergus Sutherland

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community

conservation

A date with a wetland

n February 2, thousands of people around New Zealand made a date with their local wetland as part of World Wetlands Day. “This day is a reminder that we must keep our bogs boggy, our marshes marshy and our wetlands wet,” says Matuku Reserve park ranger and Forest & Bird Waitakere branch chair John Staniland. “In the past, our wetlands have had too few lovers. It’s only now people are waking up to their charms.” Wetlands perform several jobs: they are roosting sites, fish nurseries, water purification and storage systems as well as critical flood control agents. In Auckland alone, more than 90 per cent of wetlands have been drained, so the 20-hectare wetland in Waitakere’s Matuku Reserve is one of the few vestiges of these bird-filled swamplands. A long-time wetland lover, John says most people have a more enduring type of love of wetlands. “They’re not bewitching or magnificent like our kauri – but they grow on you. We must remember civilisation sprung up around wetlands. They’re so rich in life. Much of the theatre happens under the water, or behind a curtain of reeds, so this is not obvious at first.” At the event on Matuku Reserve, pukeko, tomtits and black swans showed up in good numbers, as well as a swarm of more than 300 kids and parents. “Matuku [bitterns], fernbirds and spotless crakes are typically bashful

at this kind of event, but they were probably in attendance. Some of them were no doubt decked out in bog-like colours,” John says. People celebrated one of the founding treaties that has helped to forge greater appreciation of our wetlands: the 1971 Ramsar Convention, which was signed by 160 countries including New Zealand. “We don’t want people to just date their wetland, we want them to have a blazing affair. Getting people enamoured by wetlands is our job. In recent months, we’ve worked on the historic tramway to create a walkway that is punctuated by a number of signs highlighting the special plants that inhabit this area.” A popular attraction was a karaka tree with swarms of giraffe weevils, New Zealand’s longest beetle. Matuku has even been called the capital of the spectacular giraffe weevil,” John says. “We don’t know why they’re so abundant but we think it’s because there is so much karaka in the area.” Visitors looked at freshwater fish tanks and safely tried out one of the ferret traps used in the reserve. John that hopes with greater pest control, his branch might be able to introduce the critically endangered brown teal in the future. The event was supported by the National Wetland Trust of New Zealand, Ducks Unlimited, Waitakare Rivercare and Auckland Council. n Mandy Herrick

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1 Matuku Reserve is a hub for giraffe weevils. Researcher Chrissie Painting is studying the evolution of their mating and fighting behaviour as part of her PhD at the University of Auckland. Photo: Chrissie Painting 2 Visitors explored Auckland’s Matuku Reserve during World Wetland Day. Photo: John Staniland

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Encounter Kaikoura is a Green Globe certified business

Kids join Taranaki project F

orest & Bird’s North Taranaki branch has launched a restoration project on a section of one of New Plymouth’s popular urban riverside paths, Te Henui Walkway. The walkway passes through a big bush remnant within Welbourn School grounds, which is being put into QEll Trust protection. The school is taking great pride in preserving the particular plants of the area, and is looking forward to using the bush and river to learn about our native ecosystems. When the branch was putting together the restoration project – funded by the discontinued DOC Community Conservation Fund – the school was asked how it might be involved. One group of students interested in media began making a record of the project with before, during and after photos, footage and notes. A digitally published book is being compiled as a historical record for the community. Once the work started some students formed a Senior and a Junior Weed Warriors group and spent an amazing number of hours hand weeding large areas and dragging the weeds off site. During Arbor Day, the whole school walked the length

North Taranaki branch’s Carolyn Brough with Welbourn School children on Te Henui Walkway. Photo: Kelly Collins

of the project area, stopping at various stations where senior students involved in the project explained to students, teachers and parents different aspects of the project, showing samples of weeds and explaining the problems they cause. Students then planted 650 plants in the project area. It has been amazing to see the interest, efforts and learning that have been stimulated through Welbourn School taking part in this project. n Carolyn Brough

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community

conservation

BioBlitz turns up new species S

pecies new to science were discovered during the month-long BioBlitz at Mana, north of Wellington. A total of 1317 different species and plants were found. Among the new species was a cumacean discovered in Te Onepoto Bay (Porirua Harbour). Three new species of tanaids – crustaceans – were collected. These are commonly found among seaweed and rocks around Wellington’s coasts. A new variety of diatom, a microscopic alga, was identified by expert Margaret Harper. During the survey 225 different types of diatoms were catalogued, including five freshwater and 38 marine species recorded for the first time in New Zealand. As well as discovering the five new species, the nationally endangered pygmy button daisy, Leptinella, was found at Whitireia Park. The daisy has its own Department of Conservation recovery plan because of its rarity. The BioBlitz’s aim was to identify as many plants and animals living on land and sea in the Mana region during February. BioBlitz co-ordinator Allie Burnett says the event gave her a good appreciation of how even the most minuscule or rudimentary creatures have evolved over millennia to occupy their little niche and become an integral part of an ecosystem. Scientist Graham Bird, who found two of the new tanaids, says we don’t really know what’s on our land or in our ocean. We’ve done a good job of naming most of our larger animals, but many of the smaller creatures in our

sea, sedges, forest verges and wetlands are undiscovered, unnamed and therefore largely unprotected. Finding out what is in our seas and on our land helps us effectively manage the environment and protect species and plants that may be at risk in the future. The BioBlitz created awareness and a greater appreciation among the public towards the large variety of species in Mana and for the work of the scientists who study our wildlife. Several local and international scientists, marine graduates, divers and ecologists took part. More than 600 students from seven local schools were unleashed in the area to fossick, scour and scrutinise the land and sea in search of fresh discoveries. Paremata schoolchildren found and identified a spider that had not been yet included in the BioBlitz database. Clare O’Hagan-Harris, who teaches at Raumati Beach School, says the BioBlitz was great for children to get involved with. “It really increases their awareness, it motivates their families to come down and gets children excited, which spreads a long way. It gives them more of an appreciation of the uniqueness of the environment. It starts their interest and motivates them to find out how things work. This thing really feeds them; I think kids really want to look after it.” She feels discoveries of new species are important because “it reinforces the idea that the world is still an amazing place and there is still so much we do not know and there is still so much to learn about our planet, which is so exciting. It reminds us there are really important reasons we need to be taking care of it”. n Tamara Novak 1 Scientist Graham Bird shows school children one of the 1317 different species found during the BioBlitz held at Mana, near Wellington. Photo: Tamara Novak 2 The nationally endangered pygmy button daisy was found at Whitireia Park during the BioBlitz.

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Napier backs school

orest & Bird’s Napier branch is sponsoring Napier Intermediate School to set up an Enviroschool programme. Training to set up the programme is through the co-ordinated Hawke’s Bay Regional Council programme which covers 34 schools in the region. The branch sponsorship will pay for a facilitator to spend time at the school over the next three years. The branch is aware of the long-term benefits for children from the scheme and can see some spin offs for KCC membership and Forest & Bird in the long run. The school is already planning to grow trees from seed, plant in the school grounds, recycle and improve energy efficiency in all buildings. The school has recently been rebuilt and the children suggested that solar heating was installed. Napier branch will receive regular reports on progress and take part in some projects.

From left, Napier Intermediate School deputy principal Louise Taylor, Napier branch chair Neil Eagles and Emily Rockwell from Hawke’s Bay Regional Council.

South Auckland paddle power F

orest & Bird’s South Auckland branch celebrated Wairoa River, in Clevedon, on February 27 – one of several Forest & Bird Day on a River events that weekend. Forest & Bird worked with Clevedon Historical Society, Clevedon Business Association. Wairoa Rover Landcare and the Clevedon Paddle Club to celebrate the Wairoa River. Many locals enjoyed travelling on the river on a steam boat, Victoria, which Wayne Larsen brought from Glen Eden for the day. The steam boat did many runs up and down the river, as people picnicked at the historic McNicol Homestead. Many kayakers took the opportunity to travel the Wairoa, one regular user doing the wharf to river mouth and back in just over 50 minutes and others taking a leisurely several hours.

Catlins dune planting Southland branch has started a dune restoration project to honour a local conservation family at Waipapa Point in the Catlins. The late Ronald and Muriel Ericson were great Forest & Bird supporters, providing flax plants for the Te Rere Penguin Reserve and helping at the branch’s Lenz Reserve. The Ericsons’ children returned to Waipapa Point to join a branch planting day in February. “The Waipapa Point beach and the sea were special places for Ronald and Muriel, with the sea lions, penguins, fur seals and the dunes looked on as being theirs as they cared for them passionately,” daughter Karin Ericson said.

Whale Watch® Kaikoura Launches New Club for Kiwis From the 1st of April 2011 we will launch our new “Kiwi Whale Watchers Club”; members of the club will receive a 50% discount off an adult fare during our winter period – which for us is from 1st May to 31st October – much longer than the typical winter months of June to August. Of course conditions apply (they always do) but if you are interested in the opportunity of viewing the Giant Sperm Whale and the other marine life we can encounter off the Kaikoura coast then please send an email to jess@whalewatch.co.nz and she will send you out a membership form.

So if you love whales as much as we do, come on and join the club!

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A lone reef heron shares a small island with a flock of oystercatchers. From Visions of Nature by Trevor Penfold.

Atlas of Rare Birds By Dominic Couzens New Holland, $69.99 Reviewed by Aalbert Rebergen

Visions of Nature: New Zealand’s wild in the west By Trevor Penfold Perfect Planet Publishing, $58 Reviewed by Marina Skinner Raglan resident Trevor Penfold loves photography and wildlife, and he’s brought together his two passions in Visions of Nature, a beautifully presented hard-cover collection of colour photos. He is also aware of the threats to the wildlife and environment in his neighbourhood and beyond. “Using my skills as a photographer, I wanted to produce a book that would get people thinking more about the environment in which they live,” he writes.

Penfold succeeds in giving readers a close encounter with Raglan’s creatures that even the seaside town’s residents wouldn’t usually get. We see the well-groomed feathers of a petite grey warbler on a twig, the watchful red eyes of resting oystercatchers and a couple of feisty whitefaced herons fighting over territory. His macro photography brings us the alien eyes of a prickly stick insect and the iridescent paua shades of a blue damselfly. There’s a wow factor to most of the shots in the book, and Penfold inspires a new appreciation of his subjects. Penfold is happy to share his skills, with brief stories about how he composed his photos and details of his camera settings for each photo. Trevor Penfold is donating $5 to Forest & Bird from each copy of Visions of Nature he sells directly or through his website. Please quote the donation code F&B: $5. More information at www.trevorpenfold.com, 07 825 7088 or sales@trevorpenfold.com

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This fascinating book is not really an atlas or a guide. It is a book about why many birds are disappearing from our planet. It’s about the impact of introduced predators (often ship rats), habitat destruction, changes in agriculture, hunting, over-fishing, competing for space, pesticides, harvesting, disease, climate change and even hybridisation with related (introduced) species. It’s also about how conservation can make a difference, and Couzens provides some good examples. He describes the status, threats and sometimes successes in 50 bird species from across the globe. He does this in 10 chapters including “Back from the brink (includes our kakapo)”, “Unexpected calamities (birds you’d never have expected could become rare)”, “Lost causes?”, “Rediscoveries (includes the New Zealand storm petrel)” and “The pending tray (are they out there or not?)”. Each chapter has five bird species, with a map (hence the “atlas”) and photos of the bird and habitat. The bird chapters read like thrillers – always exciting, sometimes mysterious or very sad (the Hawaiian po’ouli or the Indian vultures). Couzens is a master writer and the book is impossible to put down. It includes all the latest knowledge of the birds it describes, including recent (claimed) observations of the ivorybilled woodpecker in the United States. My personal favourites are the pink-headed duck and white-eyed river martin (both mysteries). I read Atlas of Rare Birds cover to cover – it’s undoubtedly the best bird and conservation book I’ve read for years.

The Carbon Forest: A New Zealand guide to forest carbon sinks for investors, farmers, foresters and conservationists By Paul Kennett, Jonathan Kennett, Simon Johnson and Tom Bennion Kennett Brothers, $29.90 (order online at www.kennett.co.nz) Reviewed by Quentin Duthie It seems unlikely: an accessible guide to climate change, carbon trading and carbon forests in New Zealand. However, the authors of The Carbon Forest have successfully combined

practical, policy and legal knowledge with clear writing and real examples to produce exactly that. Their approach strongly supports individual responsibility to reduce emissions. But some emissions are unavoidable – though one author lives on a very modest 1 tonne annual budget – and carbon forests are one way to offset them. Motivations for carbon forestry can vary. Some desire a return on investment, and others focus on a moral responsibility. Some are just focused on the carbon, and others want forests to benefit biodiversity and recreation too. Some want to plant (afforestation), and others want to help nature along (regeneration). The book provides insights into all, making it suitable for all interested in forests. I enjoyed the fresh and frank approach to the climate change (science) and carbon trading (economics). But it’s not dry. The authors’ personal experience and values shine through, adding depth and diversity to the analysis and description. Only tiny inconsequential errors are apparent, like the spelling of “Stuart Island” on p162. The analysis is not complete in some places. The effect of pest animals (p138) and the assumption that conservation land is an ideal neighbour (p84) are more complex than indicated. However, these did not detract because the broader points being made are relevant nonetheless. If you have an interest in forests, this book will help you separate the wood from the trees. $30 is cheap for a wealth of information and opportunities to capture carbon, support biodiversity and make money out it.

Handbook of the Birds of the World Volume 15 Edited by Josep del Hoyo, Andrew Elliott and David A Christie

In brief Fund helps mohua: The Mohua Charitable Trust was one of 2010’s successful BirdLife International Community Conservation Fund (BLICCF) applicants and received $6000 towards translocating mohua from Chalky Island (Fiordland) to the Eglington Valley, near Te Anau. A total of 70 mohua (yellowheads) were caught and 69 (one died during the transfer) released in the Eglington Valley in October. Some of the birds immediately paired up with resident mohua or established pairs among themselves. By mid-December, 55 of 69 released birds had been observed since the release and at least 20 of the released mohua were breeding, showing that the translocation did not result in the birds missing out on a breeding season. The BLICCF has funded about 25 projects in New Zealand and the Pacific since 2007. The fund supports projects that conserve or restore globally threatened bird species or important bird areas in New Zealand and the Pacific. Forest & Bird branches, BirdLife International partners, partners designate and affiliates and associated community groups are eligible to apply for assistance from the fund. Application details and forms can be downloaded from our website www.forestandbird.org.nz For further information please email executive. officer@forestandbird.org.nz or write to BirdLife Community Fund, Forest & Bird, PO Box 631, Wellington 6011. Preliminary applications must be received by 5pm on 29 July 2011.

Lynx Edicions, €212 (order online at www.lynxeds.com) Reviewed by Aalbert Rebergen If ever there was a “handbook” in the true meaning of the word, it is this very informative and well-illustrated, soon to be 16-part series Handbook of the Birds of the World. Each volume is massive in scope, size and weight (about 4.5kg, so the 16 volumes together weigh 72kg). Volume one was published back in 1992 and the last volume is expected to be published later this year. This is really for the serious bird watcher who visits faraway places. It also provides the most up-to-date printed information about New Zealand birds. Volume 15 deals with the weavers and New World warblers and has no indigenous New Zealand birds in it, so I’ll use a foreign, but exciting, group of birds, the Hawaiian honeyeaters, to illustrate how the handbook is laid out. This highly threatened group of birds contains 23 species. The detailed introduction covers 30 pages and is illustrated with high-quality photos. Status and conservation are described on three pages. Next, all 23 species are shown on three plates of drawings, with all plumages, including female, male, juvenile, summer and winter. This is followed by the individual species descriptions with a distribution map. The text also gives the conservation status of the birds, unfortunately in this case mostly critically endangered. For the general reader, like myself, reading about the threats and conservation successes is the most rewarding. Just looking at the pictures and drawings makes you realise what an amazing group of animals birds really are and why they are the most well-loved creatures on our planet.

JS Watson Trust: Applications are invited from individuals or conservation groups for conservation projects for the 2011-2012 year. Application details and forms can be downloaded from our website www. forestandbird.org.nz For further information please email executive.officer@forestandbird.org.nz or write to JS Watson Conservation Trust, Forest & Bird, PO Box 631, Wellington 6011. Preliminary applications must be received by 5pm on 3 June 2011. Macpac discount: Forest & Bird and outdoor clothing and equipment store Macpac have begun a new partnership in which Forest & Bird will receive 10 per cent of money spent by our members. Just mention your Forest & Bird membership when you’re shopping. You will also need to join Macpac’s free Wilderness Club. Forest & Bird

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A special offer for Forest & Bird readers

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Wild Encounters Our popular Going Places articles and other nature-themed travel stories from Forest & Bird magazine have been collected together in a handy book edition, Wild Encounters, published by Penguin. From the rocky shore to dense rainforests, from braided riverbeds to alpine meadows, Wild Encounters is a handy guide to the best place to experience New Zealand’s wildlife and wild places. Wild Encounters will retail in shops for $40, but Forest & Bird readers can purchase this book for just $35, including post and packaging, with $10 from each copy ordered going towards Forest & Bird’s important conservation work. That means you will receive this beautifully illustrated guide and get to help nature in New Zealand. Please send a cheque for $35, or provide your credit card details in the form below and send to: Wild Encounters Forest & Bird PO Box 631 Wellington

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04 2010

Bank Stamp

Conditions of this authority The Initiator: (a) Has agreed to give written advance notice to the customer of the commencement date, frequency and amount at least 10 calendar days before the first Direct Debit is drawn (but not more than 2 calendar months). This advance notice will be provided either (i) in writing; or (ii) by electronic mail where the customer has provided prior written consent to the initiator. In the event of any subsequent change to the frequency or amount of the direct debits, the initiator has agreed to give advance notice at least 30 days before the change comes into effect. This notice must be provided either: (i) in writing, or (ii) by electronic mail where the customer has provided written consent to the initiator. The advance notice will include the following message:“The amount of $...... will be direct debited to your bank account on (initiating date) and then at the frequency specified in your authority”. (b) May, upon the relationship which gave rise to this Authority being terminated, give notice to the bank that no further Direct Debits are to be initiated under the Authority. Upon receipt of such notice the Bank may terminate this Authority as to future payments by notice in writing to me/us. (c) May, upon receiving an “authority transfer form” (dated after the day of this authority) signed by me/us and addressed to a bank to which I/we have transferred my/ our bank account, initiate Direct Debits in reliance of that transfer form and this Authority for the account identified in the authority transfer form.

The Customer may: (a) At any time, terminate this Authority as to future payments by giving written notice of termination to the Bank and to the Initiator. (b) Stop payment of any direct debit to be initiated under this authority by the Initiator by giving written notice to the Bank prior to the direct debit being paid by the Bank. The Customer acknowledges that: (a) This Authority will remain in full force and effect in respect of all direct debits made from my/our account in good faith notwithstanding my/our death, bankruptcy or other revocation of this Authority until actual notice of such event is received by the bank. (b) In any event this Authority is subject to any arrangement now or hereafter existing between me/us and the Bank in relation to my/our account. (c) Any dispute as to the correctness or validity of an amount debited to my/our account shall not be the concern of the Bank except in so far as the direct debit has not been paid in accordance with this Authority. Any other disputes lie between me/us and the Initiator. (d) Where the Bank has used reasonable care and skill in acting in accordance with this authority, the Bank accepts no responsibility or liability in respect of: - The accuracy of information about Direct Debits on bank statements. - Any variations between notices given by the Initiator and the amounts of Direct Debits.

(e) The Bank is not responsible for, or under any liability in respect of the Initiator’s failure to give written notice correctly nor for the non-receipt or late receipt of notice by me/us for any reason whatsoever. In any such situation the dispute lies between me/us and the Initiator. The Bank may: (a) In its absolute discretion conclusively determine the order of priority of payment by it of any monies pursuant to this or any other authority, cheque or draft properly executed by me/us and given to or drawn on the Bank. (b) At any time terminate this authority as to future payments by notice in writing to me/us. (c) Charge its current fees for this service in force from timeto-time. (d) Upon receipt of an “authority to transfer form” signed by me/us from a bank to which my/our account has been transferred, transfer to that bank this Authority to Accept Direct Debits.

Forest & Bird 04 385 7374

Forest & Bird

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Parting shot This North Island robin or toutouwai (Petroica longipes) was captured by Auckland conservationist and wildlife photographer Simon Fordham. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Having upgraded my camera to a Nikon D300s, I was keen to use the leap in technology from my previous model (D200). With my favourite birding lens attached (70-300 VR) and an SB900 flash, I headed off to Tiritiri Matangi Island for the Easter break. Always on the lookout for a suitable subject, I noticed this robin as it appeared unexpectedly, showing off his catch and posing long enough for one photo.â&#x20AC;? 70

| Forest & Bird

The North Island robin was introduced to Tiritiri Matangi Island near Auckland in 1992. Breeding has been so successful that robins have been moved from Tiritiri to other conservation projects, including Wenderholm Regional Park and two sites on Great Barrier Island. Robins mainly eat insects, though tree weta are not usually on the menu. The weta would normally spend its day safely hidden in a small hole in a tree.

branch directory

Upper North Island Central Auckland Branch: Chairperson, Anne Fenn; Secretary, Isabel Still, Tel: (09) 528-3986. CentralAuckland.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Far North Branch: Chairperson, Vacant; Secretary, Michael Winch, Tel: (09) 401-7401. FarNorth.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Franklin Branch: Chairperson, Keith Gardner, Secretary, Vacant, Tel: (09) 238-9928. Franklin.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Hauraki Islands Branch: Chairperson, Brian Griffiths; Secretary, Sue Fitchett, Tel: (09) 372-7600. HaurakiIslands.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Hibiscus Coast Branch: Chairperson, Pauline Smith; Secretary, Katie Lucas, Tel: (09) 427-5186. HibiscusCoast.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Kaipara Branch: Chairperson, Vacant; Secretary, Vacant; Deputy Chairperson, Dave Allen, Tel: (09) 411-8314. Kaipara.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Mercury Bay Branch: Chairperson, Eve McCarthy; Secretary, Vanessa Ford, Tel: (07) 866-4355. MercuryBay.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Mid North Branch: Chairperson, Warwick Massey; Secretary, Raewyn Morrison, Tel: (09) 422-9123. MidNorth.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz North Shore Branch: Chairperson, Alan Emmerson; Secretary, Jocelyn Sanders, Tel: (09) 479-2107. NorthShore.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Northern Branch: Chairperson, Vacant; Secretary, Beverly Woods, Tel: (09) 432-7122. Northern.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz South Auckland Branch: Chairperson, Dene Andre; Secretary, Brian Gidley, Tel: (09) 278-0185. SouthAuckland.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Thames-Hauraki Branch: Chairperson, Marcia Sowman; Secretary, Hazel Genner, Tel: (07) 868-9057. ThamesHauraki.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Upper Coromandel Branch: Chairperson, Tina Morgan; Secretary, Vacant, Tel. (07) 866-6720. UpperCoromandel.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Waitakere Branch: Chairperson, John Staniland; Secretary, Janie Vaughan, Tel: (09) 817-9262. Waitakere.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Central North Island Eastern Bay of Plenty Branch: Chairperson, Mark Fort; Secretary, Lesley Swindells, Tel: (07) 307-0846. EasternBayofPlenty.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Gisborne Branch: Chairperson, Grant Vincent; Secretary, Wendy McLean, Tel: (06) 868-8236. Gisborne.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Rotorua Branch: Chairperson, Chair rotates among committee members; Secretaries, Margaret Dick, Tel: (07) 357-2024 or Delight Gartlein Tel: (07) 357-2575. Rotorua.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Hastings-Havelock North Branch: Chairperson, Ian Noble; Secretary, Lorna Templeton, Tel: (06) 845-4155. HastingsHavelockNorth.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Horowhenua Branch: Chairperson, Debbie Waldin; Secretary, Belinda McLean, Tel: (06) 364-5573. Horowhenua.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Kapiti-Mana Branch: Chairperson, Tony Ward; Secretary, John McLachlan, Tel: (04) 904-0027. KapitiMana.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Lower Hutt Branch: Chairperson, Russell Bell; Secretary, Stan Butcher, Tel: (04) 567-7271. LowerHutt.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Manawatu Branch: Chairperson, Vacant; Secretary, Nina Mercer, Tel: (06) 355-0496. Manawatu.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Napier Branch: Chairperson, Neil Eagles; Secretary, Barbara McPherson, Tel: (06) 845-0425. Napier.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz North Taranaki Branch: Chairperson, Carolyn Brough; Secretary, Murray Duke, Tel: (06) 751-2759. NorthTaranaki.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Rangitikei Branch: Chairperson, Diana Stewart; Secretary, Dot Mattocks, Tel: (06) 327-8790. Rangitikei.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz South Taranaki Branch: Chairperson, Dave Digby; Secretary, Carol Digby, Tel: (06) 765 7482. SouthTaranaki.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Upper Hutt Branch: Chairperson, Barry Wards; Secretary, Fred Fowler, Tel: (04) 569-7187. UpperHutt.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Wairarapa Branch: Chairperson, Geoff Doring; Secretary, Roger Greenslade, Tel: (06) 377-5255. Wairarapa.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Wanganui Branch: Chairperson, Esther Williams; Secretary, Ray Hutchison, Tel: (06) 345-2651. Wanganui.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Wellington Branch: Chairperson, Peter Hunt; Secretary, David Ellison, Tel (04) 499-2250. Wellington.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

South Island Ashburton Branch: Chairperson, Edith Smith; Secretary, Val Clemens, Tel: (03) 308-5620. Ashburton.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Central Otago-Lakes Branch: Chairperson, Mark Ayre; Secretary, Denise Bruns, Tel: (03) 443-5462. CentralOtagoLakes.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Dunedin Branch: Chairperson, Janet Ledingham; Secretary, Mark Hanger, Tel: (03) 489-3233. Dunedin.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Golden Bay Branch: Chairperson, Jenny Treloar; Secretary, Jo-Anne Vaughan, Tel: (03) 525-6031. GoldenBay.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz Kaikoura Branch: Chairperson, Ailsa Howard; Secretary, Barry Dunnett, Tel: (03) 319-5086. Kaikoura.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

South Waikato Branch: Chairperson, Anne Groos; Secretary, Jack Groos, Tel: (07) 886-7456. SouthWaikato.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Marlborough Branch: Chairperson, Andrew John; Secretary, Lynda Neame, Tel: (03) 578-2013. Marlborough.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Taupo Branch: Chairperson, Vacant; Secretary, Vacant, PO Box 1105, Taupo 3351.

Nelson-Tasman Branch: Chairperson, Helen Campbell; Secretary, Gillian Pollock, Tel: (03) 526-6009. NelsonTasman.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Tauranga Branch: Chairperson, David Dowrick; Secretary, Vacant, Tel (07) 571-0974. Tauranga.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

North Canterbury Branch: Chairperson, Bruce Coleman; Secretary, Paul Mosley, Tel: (03) 329-6242. NorthCanterbury.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Te Puke Branch: Chairperson Cathy Reid; Secretary, Bev Nairn, Tel: (07) 533-4247. TePuke.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

South Canterbury Branch: Chairperson, Vacant; Secretary, Margaret McPherson, Tel: (03) 686-1494. SouthCanterbury.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Waihi Section: Chairperson, Ian Bradshaw; Secretary, Krishna Buckman, Tel: (07) 863-8455. Waihi.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

South Otago Branch: Chairperson, Roy Johnstone; Secretary, Jane Young, Tel: (03) 415-8532. SouthOtago.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Waikato Branch: Chairperson, Philip Hart; Secretary, Jim Macdiarmid, Tel: (07) 849-3438. Waikato.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Southland Branch: Chairperson, Craig Carson; Secretary, Jenny Campbell, Tel: (03) 248-6398. Southland.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Lower North Island

West Coast Branch: Chairperson, Kathy Gilbert; Secretary, Jane Marshall, WestCoast.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

Central Hawkes Bay Branch: Chairperson, Dan Elderkamp; Secretary, Barrie & Judith Bayliss, Tel: (06) 858-8765. CentralHawkesBay.Branch@forestandbird.org.nz

lodge accommodation

Arethusa Cottage An ideal place from which to explore the Far North. Near Pukenui in wetland reserve. 6 bunks, fully equipped kitchen, separate bathroom outside. For information and bookings, contact: John Dawn, Doves Bay Road, RD1, Kerikeri. Tel: (09) 407-8658. Email: johnfd@xnet.co.nz.

Tai Haruru Lodge, Piha, West Auckland A seaside haven set in a large sheltered garden on the rugged West Coast, 38km on sealed roads from central Auckland. Close to store, bush reserves and tracks in the beautiful Waitakere Ranges. Sleeps up to 6 in 1 dble brm, 1 brm and lounge, Lounge has wood burner, dining area and kitchen. Self-contained unit has 4 single beds. Bring food, linen and fuel for fire and BBQ. Off peak rates apply. Booking: Jean and Peter King, 10 La Trobe Track, Karekare, Waitakere City. Tel: (09) 812 8064. Email: hop0018@slingshot.co.nz

Waiheke Island Cottage Located next to our 49ha Wildlife Reserve, 10 mins walk to Onetangi Beach, general stores etc. Sleeps up to 8 in two bedrooms. Lounge, well-equipped kitchen, separate toilet, bathroom, shower, laundry. Pillows, blankets provided. No pets. Ferries 35 minutes from Auckland. Enquiries with stamped addressed envelope to: Robin Griffiths, 125 The Strand, Onetangi, Waiheke Island. Tel: (09) 372-7662.

For branch postal addresses, please see www.forestandbird.org.nz

William Hartree Memorial Lodge, Hawke’s Bay Situated 48km from Napier, 8km past Patoka on the Puketitiri Rd (sealed). The lodge is set amid a 14ha scenic reserve and close to many walks, eg: Kaweka Range, Balls Clearing, hot springs and museum. The lodge accommodates up to 10 people. It has a fully equipped kitchen including stove, refrigerator and microwave plus tile fire, hot showers. Supply your own pillows, linen, sleeping bags etc. For information and bookings please send a stamped addressed envelope to Mike and Linda Hay, 172 Guppy Road, Taradale, Napier 4112. Tel: (06) 8444651. Email: hayhouse@clear.net.nz.

Ruapehu lodge, Tongariro National Park The newly built lodge is 600 metres from Whakapapa Village. It sleeps 32 people – three bunkrooms sleep 4 each, one sleeps 6 and two upstairs sleeping areas sleep 14. Supply your own bedding and food. Bookings and inquiries to Forest & Bird, PO Box 631, Wellington. Tel: (04) 385-7374. Email: office@forestandbird.org.nz

Matiu/Somes Island, Wellington Harbour Joint venture accommodation by Lower Hutt Forest and Bird with DOC. A modern family home with kitchen, 3 bedrooms, large lounge and dining room, just 20 mins sailing by ferry

from the centre of Wellington or 10 mins from Days Bay. Ideal place to relax in beautiful surroundings, with accommodation for 8. Bring your own food and bedding and a torch. Smoking is banned everywhere on the island, including the house. Forest & Bird members get a 25% discount. For more information, visit www. doc.govt.nz and for bookings, contact the DOC Wellington Visitors Centre at wellingtonvc@doc. govt.nz, ph (04) 384-7770 or mail to PO Box 10420, The Terrace, Wellington 6143.

Mangarakau Swamp Field Centre, North West Nelson Borders Kahurangi National Park and Te Tai Tapu Marine Reserve. New, 10 bed lodge with two bathrooms, fully equipped kitchen. Sleeping bags, towels and food required. Contact Jo-Anne Vaughan – Golden Bay Branch Secretary for details: javn@xtra.co.nz or phone (03) 5248072.

Tautuku Lodge, Otago State Highway 92, Southeast Otago. Situated on Forest and Bird’s 550ha Lenz Reserve 32km south of Owaka. A bush setting, and many lovely beaches nearby provide a wonderful base for exploring the Catlins. The cottage, the cabin and an A-frame sleep 10, 4 and 2 respectively. No animals. For information and rates please send a stamped addressed envelope to the caretaker: Diana Noonan, Mirren St, Papatowai, Owaka, RD2. Tel: (03) 415-8024, fax (03) 415-8244. Email: diana.keith@ruralinzone.net

Bivouac Outdoor is a 100% New Zealand owned company with a business model that gives the flexibility and scale to provide you with the best outdoor clothing and equipment available in the world today. “Committed to adventure” is not a throw away line, it’s a mission statement that we will bring you the best of the best.

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Exped DownMat 7 Pump Features; 700 loft goose down filling dramatically reduces heat loss; foam baffles prevent down escaping through the valves and shifting from one chamber to the next. Laminated, polyester fabric is UV and abrasion resistant, slip proof and air tight. High frequency welded construction. Baffled chambers eliminate cold spots. Over twice the insulation of most self inflating mats. Unique integrated pump for rapid intuitive inflation. The new Exped DownMat 7 is 178cm long, 52cm wide, and a luxurious 7cm thick, yet it compacts down to a roll only 23cm long and 16cm in diameter and weighing in at 880gm. A massive R-value* of 5.9 is produced by its 170gm fill weight of 700 loft goose down. $219 RRP. *R-value = Relative Warmth. The higher the r-value, the more insulating the sleeping mat will be.

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