Forest & Bird Magazine 325 August 2007 by Forest & Bird

FOREST BIRD Number 325 • AUGUST 2007

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Climate Change • Maui’s Dolphins • Flora Saddle • Tui De Roy Kiwi Recovery • Kapiti Island • Waitangi Park • Palau

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FOREST BIRD Number 325 • AUGUST 2007 • www.forestandbird.org.nz

Three Kings Islands

In this issue

Poor Knights Islands

Mangere

Tiri Tiri Matangi Island

Waitakere Ranges

Coromandel Peninsular

Mt Taranaki

Otanewainuku

Bushy Park Kapiti Island

Tongariro

Flora Saddle

Cape Kidnappers

Kahurangi

Waitangi Park

Otira/Arthur’s Pass

Karori Wildlife Sanctuary

Features

14 Withering Heights Dave Hansford on the climate threat to native species

18 Photographic memory Michael Szabo meets photographer Tui De Roy

21 Flourishing Flora Maryann Ewers profiles the Friends of Flora

23 Springtime at Flora Helen Campbell goes on a rewarding KCC field trip

24 Sanctuary or extinction – Emergency 111 Helen Bain makes the case for saving Maui’s dolphins

26 The people’s bird Fiordland Map artwork: Bruce Mahalski

Wairau River

Neville Peat in praise of “The People’s Bird”

29 Taranaki kiwi comeback Lake Heron

Helen Bain on the Taranaki Kiwi Trust

30 Fantails and fruit-doves Michael Peak

Michael Szabo reports from Palau in Micronesia

Regulars Forest & Bird incorporating Conservation News is published every February, May, August and November by the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society Inc. The Society's objectives are to preserve and protect the indigenous flora and fauna and natural features and landscapes of New Zealand for their intrinsic worth and for the benefit of all people. Forest & Bird is a member of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and the New Zealand Partner Designate of BirdLife International. The opinions of contributors to Forest & Bird are not necessarily those of the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society, nor its editor. Forest & Bird is printed on Novatech, an elemental chlorine-free (ECF) paper which is made from wood fibre sourced from sustainably managed forests. * Registered at PO Headquarters, Wellington, as a magazine. ISSN 0015-7384. © Copyright. All rights reserved. Editor: Michael Szabo Deputy Editor: Helen Bain PO Box 631, Wellington. Tel: (04) 385-7374 Fax: (04) 385-7373 m.szabo@forestandbird.org.nz h.bain@forestandbird.org.nz Designer: Dave Kent Design Prepress/Printing: Astra Print Advertising: Vanessa Clegg ADFX, PO Box 11-836, Ellerslie 1051. Tel: 0275 420 337 Email: vanclegg@xtra.co.nz

Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Inc. General Manager: Mike Britton Communications Manager: Michael Szabo North Island Field Coordinator: Mark Bellingham South Island Field Coordinator: Chris Todd Advocacy Manager: Kevin Hackwell Services Manager: Julie Watson Central Office: Level 1, 90 Ghuznee St, Wellington. Postal Address: PO Box 631, Wellington. Tel: (04) 385-7374, Fax: (04) 385-7373 Email: office@forestandbird.org.nz Web: www.forestandbird.org.nz Auckland Office: PO Box 67 123, Mt Eden, Auckland. Tel: (09) 631 7142 Fax: (09) 631 7149 Email: m.bellingham@forestandbird.org.nz Christchurch Office: PO Box 2516, Christchurch. Tel: (03) 366 6317 Fax: (03) 365 0788 Email: c.todd@forestandbird.org.nz KCC Coordinator: Ann Graeme 53 Princess Rd, Tauranga Tel: (07) 576-5593 Fax (07) 576-5109 Email: basilann@nettel.net.nz

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2 Comment A victory and a challenge by Dr Peter Maddison

3 Conservation Briefs Michael Peak Station; New World Heritage list; Climate threats to World Heritage; Whales sightings; Hihi at Ark in the Park; New albatross species; BirdLife International Community Fund; Conservation in a changing climate; Karori Wildlife Sanctuary funding; Morepork survey; Audrey Eagle wins at Montana Book Awards; New Caledonia birds mapped; Mangere waders return; New pest control agent.

33 Going Places Kapiti Island Nature Reserve and Marine Reserve by Michael Szabo

36 Itinerant Ecologist The remnant ecologies of Waitangi Park by Geoff Park

38 In the Field The trouble with deer by Ann Graeme and Tim Galloway

40 Conservation News High country lakes get better protection; Deer in their sights; Sustainable fisheries; DOC appeals Wairau hydro decision; Lake Heron road decision under review; Maui’s campaign launched; Sea lion death toll continues; Good news for albatrosses.

44 Branching Out 84th Annual General Meeting; “Old Blue” Awards; Use your will power; Vote of thanks; Waitakere Branch thanks Ken Catt; Tony Ellis; Art for Conservation; New staff appointments. COVER: ROCKHOPPER PENGUIN, CAMPBELL ISLAND – SEE PAGE 14. PHOTOGRAPH: ROD MORRIS F O RF EOSRTE S&T B&I RBDI R•D N•O V A EUM GU B ES R T 2007 6

Comment A victory and a challenge

T is always nice to be able to report a victory for conservation. The announcement by the Government in June that it will make significant changes to tenure review to better protect conservation values in the South Island high country will have been warmly received by many people in Forest & Bird who have worked hard to get better results from the process. Forest & Bird was instrumental in bringing to public – and government – attention the fact that the balance of tenure review had tipped too far in favour of high country farmers, and away from protection of the conservation and recreational values of the high country. We were seeing New Zealand’s iconic high country carved up and given away into private ownership, and exposed to sub-division and intensified land use, threatening the survival of some of our most precious native species and stunning landscapes including some of our most scenic lakes. The government has recognised that tenure review was not protecting the high country, and has moved to exclude properties with “significant lakeside, landscape, biodiversity or other values” from tenure review. Forest & Bird applauds that decision and will be watching carefully to ensure that the policy is adhered to. I congratulate all of our branches, members and staff who played a huge role in advocating for a better deal for conservation in the high country. But, having achieved this victory, we can’t rest easy. As always, there are plenty more challenges in conservation that demand our urgent attention, and are the focus of ongoing campaigns by Forest & Bird to get better protection for our native species and habitats.

Too many of our endemic Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins are being killed, mostly in set nets. Too many of our fisheries are unsustainable. Too many of our waterways are degraded by the effects of farming and the demands of irrigation and power generation. And too many of our forests and native species are suffering the ravages of introduced plant and animal pests. One of the most urgent challenges we face is the growing problem of feral deer. There are seven species of introduced deer throughout a large proportion of the conservation estate. Since the commercial helicopter deer hunting industry collapsed at the start of this decade, deer numbers have steadily increased, as there is little effective control of these animals. Deer could be described as “possums with hooves”: they do serious damage to native ecosystems, browsing seedlings and forest understorey (particularly the tastiest plant species), ringbarking trees, trampling and destroying groundcover and competing with native species for food. In some places they are killing off the next generation of forest, leading to total collapse of those forests. Walking in many of our deer-browsed forests is like entering an empty cathedral: while there is a lovely canopy above you, underneath there is nothing but empty space. Recreational deer hunting is clearly not enough to sufficiently reduce deer numbers to protect native ecosystems from the damage they wreak. Forest & Bird is not anti-hunting – far from it: the more hunting the better for our forests. However, a small number of hunters want to turn our conservation areas into virtual deer farms. If New Zealanders were asked to choose between having large numbers of deer in our forests, or preserving our native forests, the sounds of our beautiful dawn

chorus, and iconic native species like kiwi, I know that they would overwhelmingly choose the latter. If commercial hunting of deer is no longer financially viable, then it is in our best interests to encourage increased recreational hunting, and publicly fund other methods to effectively manage feral deer populations to protect the conservation values of our natural environment. Let’s bring back the Barry Crumps – and put them in helicopters. The government recently set up a ministerial panel to review the management of deer, tahr, chamois and pigs in conservation areas – one of its members is Forest & Bird Field Officer Sue Maturin. I would encourage Forest & Bird members to also play their part by making submissions to the panel. By having your say you can make a valuable contribution to one of the most important conservation challenges we are facing today. For those of you who didn’t attend this year’s Forest & Bird Annual General Meeting, you can find a full report on our website www.forestandbird.org.nz and on page 44. Dr Peter Maddison Forest & Bird National President

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. Anand Satyanand, Governor-General of New Zealand NATIONAL PRESIDENT: Dr Peter Maddison DEPUTY PRESIDENT: Dr Barry Wards NATIONAL TREASURER: Stephen McPhail EXECUTIVE COUNCILLORS: Rob Brown, Anne Fenn, Mark Fort, Dr Philip Hart, Donald

Kerr, Janet Ledingham, Suzi Phillips, Craig Potton, Dr Gerry McSweeney, Associate Professor Liz Slooten. DISTINGUISHED LIFE MEMBERS: Dr Bill Ballantine MBE, Stan Butcher QSM, Ken Catt QSM, Audrey Eagle CNZM, Dr Alan Edmonds, Gordon Ell ONZM, Dr Philip Hart, Hon. Sandra Lee-Vercoe QSO JP, Stewart Gray, Les Henderson, Joan Leckie QSM, Prof. Alan Mark DCNZM CBE, Dr Gerry McSweeney QSO, Geoff Moon OBE, Prof. John Morton QSO, Margaret Peace QSM, Guy Salmon, Lesley Shand MNZM, Gordon Stephenson CNZM, David Underwood.

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conservationbriefs

ONSERVATION of the South Island high country has been boosted with the Government purchase of Michael Peak Station in Central Otago. The station is located in the headwaters of the Manuherikia Valley, north of State Highway 85 between Alexandra and Ranfurly. Nearly 7000-hectares (ha) of the 9000-ha purchase made by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) and the Nature Heritage Fund will become part of the proposed Oteake Conservation Park, Minister for Land Information David Parker and Conservation Minister Chris Carter announced in June. “This station forms part of the stunning Upper Manuherikia landscape that has inspired artists such as painter Grahame Sydney and poet Brian Turner,” David Parker says. “The station contains a rich and vibrant variety of

ecosystems and plants of high conservation value,” Chris Carter says. “They include high altitude snow totara, and a wide range of subalpine shrubs and tussock grasslands.” Forest & Bird SouthlandOtago Field Officer Sue Maturin says the purchase will hasten the creation of the Oteake Conservation Park on the St Bathan/Hawkdun and Ida Ranges. Forest & Bird identified Oteake as a priority for high country protection in its “Six-pack of Parks” campaign launched in 2005. Sue Maturin says the purchase of whole high country pastoral leases such as Michael Peak Station are better for conservation than deals made under the tenure review process. The Michael Peak Station purchase is particularly good news because the Crown will be able to protect the biodiversityrich valley floors, which have often been traded away under past tenure review deals.

Gilbert van Reenen

“Grahame Sydney” landscape protected at Michael Peak

Michael Peak is set to become part of the proposed Oteake Conservation Park

For example, on the neighbouring Braeside pastoral lease property, which underwent tenure review, the Crown paid nearly $1 million for high altitude land, while the most important lowland red tussockland was given away. Forest & Bird believes these lowland tussocklands should have formed the entrance to the Oteake Conservation Park.

In contrast, the Michael Peak Station purchase is likely to result in a much better future Oteake Conservation Park than could have been achieved through tenure review. “Forest & Bird wants to see more full property purchases like this, where there is a winwin outcome, for farmers and for conservation,” Sue Maturin says. Helen Bain

St Kilda Marine Environment Trustees - John Farry,Tanya Jenkins, Neville Peat at St Kilda Beach

Seahorse Fund promotes eco-affluence New Zealand's marine environment holds 80% of our country's total biodiversity. It's under attack from overfishing, pollution and manmade coastal erosion. WWF has identified it as one of 238 ecoregions requiring global priority for conservation action (the Global 200).

How the Seahorse Fund works

For each Seahorse Fund account opened, St Kilda Finance donates 0.5% pa interest to the St Kilda Marine Environment Trust, a charitable trust established to help safeguard our precious coastline and oceans for future generations of New Zealanders.

9.75%

* p.a.

24-month investment

* First Ranking Debt Security Stock. Minimum investment – $1000. Other rates/terms available. Ranking subject to prior charges (if any).

Safeguarding our coasts

Under the careful stewardship of Trustees John Farry, holder of the NZ Order of Merit, environmental consultant Tanya Jenkins, and renowned nature writer and photographer Neville Peat, the St Kilda Marine Environment Trust aims to protect our marine environment through funding education, local projects and promoting an understanding of this fragile resource. The three waves are the official symbol of the St Kilda Marine Environment Trust

All loans secured against land and buildings.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION AND A COPY OF THE INVESTMENT STATEMENT PLEASE CALL US Head Office Ground Floor Otago House Cnr Princes Street & Moray Place PO Box 1479 Dunedin New Zealand Telephone 0800 785 4532 Facsimile 03-470 1294 www.stkilda.co.nz St Kilda Marine Environment Trust is an annual sponsor of NZAEE's Seaweek. St Kilda Finance donates to the St Kilda Marine Environment Trust. St Kilda Finance is the trading name of All Purpose Finance Ltd.

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

www.stkilda.co.nz

14028 F&B

conservationbriefs

Kim Westerskov

Shoal of mado at the Kermadec Islands Marine Reserve

New World Heritage list announced

HE Government announced its longanticipated tentative list of potential World Heritage

Areas on the eve of the 31st Session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee which was held in Christchurch in June.

The Committee only considers nominations for new World Heritage sites if they are included on a state’s tentative list.

Climate change threat to World Heritage Areas

T the UNESCO World Heritage Committee meeting member states of the World Heritage (WH) Convention were urged to participate in the UN Climate Change conferences with a view to achieving a comprehensive post-Kyoto agreement, required to report annually on WH sites most affected by climate change, and a policy was adopted on future sessions being carbon neutral to the extent feasible. International Climate Justice Programme spokesman Duncan Currie welcomed the increased attention to climate change but urged more action. “The Committee’s decision to strike the oryx sanctuary from the World Heritage List after Oman’s intention to drill for oil sends a strong message. But the Committee and its member states have a lot more work to do to protect some of our most highly valued sites on Earth from climate change. A comprehensive agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is crucial. All States need to implement the Kyoto Protocol in the meantime, and to work in all international agreements to combat climate change and its effects,” he said. An expert panel report under the Convention on Biodiversity has concluded that the impacts

of climate change are evident on at least 79 WH sites with 17 of these having already lost biodiversity as a result of climate change. On the Great Barrier Reef rising sea surface temperatures over the last 20 years have increased coral bleaching. About half the live coral in Belize was lost between 1997 and 1999 from the combined effects of coral bleaching and Hurricane Mitch, with little recovery over the last eight years. In the Himalayas, global warming has led to the retreat of 67% of Himalayan glaciers. Continued melt is likely to cause a severe reduction in the flow of major rivers such as the Ganges and Indus as the glaciers disappear. In the meantime, increased summertime flows mean floods become more frequent. The Committee has responded by developing a policy on the impacts of climate change on WH properties and a strategy on predicting and managing its effects. However, it has yet to recognise the threat posed by climate change to any specific sites by adding them to UNESCO’s List of World Heritage in Danger. It made this more likely by deciding in Christchurch to develop criteria by which sites

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most threatened by climate change could be listed as being “in danger”. Inclusion on the Convention’s “in danger” list helps to mobilise international support for their conservation, can include a field visit by qualified observers from the IUCN or other organisations to evaluate the threats and provide assistance and advice to state parties on the actions needed to conserve World Heritage values. The Committee can also help fund assistance for sites on the “in danger” list. The Committee did list the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador) and the Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal) as WH sites “in danger”. The Galapagos Islands were the world’s first World Heritage site in 1978. The 19 islands and the surrounding marine reserve are threatened by invasive species, growing tourism pressure and immigration. The Niokolo-Koba National Park on the banks of the Gambian river and its rich fauna of lions, chimpanzees, leopards and elephants are endangered by poaching and plans to dam the river a few kilometres upstream of the park boundary. See www.climatelaw.org for information from the Climate Justice Programme.

Forest & Bird was especially pleased to find that New Zealand’s tentative list includes the Kermadec Islands and Marine Reserve, Kahurangi National Park and Farewell Spit, the fiords of Fiordland, and the North-East Islands, which include the Poor Knights, Three Kings and several important Hauraki Gulf Islands. These are all sites Forest & Bird has either proposed or campaigned for in the past. It was a disappointment, however, that the RakaiaRangitata-Hakatere area proposed by the Forest & Bird Ashburton Branch was not included on the list. Although this scenic area of braided rivers and high country lakes was apparently included in an earlier draft of the list, it did not make it to the publicly announced final version.

Whale sighting success

HE Department of Conservation (DOC) reports a strong public response to its call for sightings of southern right whales. For the fourth year running DOC is asking the public to report sightings of the rare whales to help it find out whether the whales seen around the New Zealand mainland are a distinct and separate population from those seen around the Auckland Islands and Australia. By the end of June DOC had received 26 sightings of southern right whales, with most sightings from Otago, where 11 whales were reported. Others were seen in Southland, West Coast, Wellington Harbour, Wanganui and East CoastHawkes Bay. A total of 64 whales were reported in the whole of 2006. DOC asks anyone that sees southern right whales to report the date, time, location, number of whales and direction of travel to 0800 DOC HOT (0800 36 24 68) as soon as possible. Helen Bain

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FOREST & BIRD â&#x20AC;¢ AUGUST 2007

One of the male hihi released at Ark in the Park.

More hihi for Ark in the Park

SECOND group of hihi (stitchbirds) caught at Tiri Tiri Matangi Island were released at the joint Forest & Bird and Auckland Regional Council Ark in the Park project site in the Waitakere Ranges on 15 June. Half the 29 birds were released and half held in an aviary to be released a few days later. Waitakere Branch

Licensing Trust funded costs associated with catching the birds, their transport off-island, post-release monitoring, and provision of feeder stations and nest boxes, while the Auckland Zoo Conservation Trust funded the costs of pathology tests on all the birds. Generous donations from Dr Allan Nunns of California and Geoff and Sharon Sumich, also of California, also helped. “That the capture, quarantine on Tiri Tiri Matangi Island, and subsequent release at the Ark went so smoothly is a tribute to many people,” Waitakere

Branch committee member and Old Blue recipient John Sumich says. “Among these were Ark in the Park manager Sandra Jack who efficiently organised the capture, and the catching team! Our hihi researcher Kate Richardson spent a week on Tiri Tiri Matangi Island feeding and caring for the captured birds while pathology results were being analysed, and Dr Isabel Castro came up from Massey University to again attach transmitters to 12 birds. Thanks also go to all the volunteers that helped in all the long day’s events.”

committee member John Staniland supervised the selection of young people from the Riverhead Scout Pack, Waitakere School, and Tirimoana School to free the birds from their carrying boxes. The second release, like the first in February, was made possible because by the generous support of funders. The ASB Trust and the Portage

Rod Morris

Eric Wilson

conservationbriefs

White-capped albatross is a new endemic species.

New albatross species

EW Zealand officially has a new endemic species of albatross. Recently, “shy” type albatrosses which breed in Australia and New Zealand were split into shy albatross (Thalassarche cauta) and whitecapped albatross (T. steadi), increasing the world total from 21 to 22 species of albatross. Although the two new species are visually very similar, their populations are geographically isolated, with shy albatross breeding at islands off Tasmania in Australia and white-capped albatross breeding at subantarctic islands in New Zealand. DNA analysis found sufficiently distinct differences between the two populations to justify the split. Knowledge of their

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geographical distributions is largely based on DNA identification of dead albatrosses caught in commercial fisheries. These data indicate that the two species have very different distributions, with the adult shy albatross largely confined to Australian waters, and whitecapped albatross ranging across the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Throughout their range, white-capped albatrosses are exposed to many trawl and longline commercial fisheries and are one of the most frequently-caught species off South Africa and New Zealand. Both new species are listed as “near threatened” on the IUCN (World Conservation Union) Red List of Globally Threatened Species. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

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FOREST & BIRD â&#x20AC;¢ AUGUST 2007

conservationbriefs

ONSERVATION in New Zealand is set to benefit from a new source of funding. The story behind the new fund starts in the second half of the nineteenth century when the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company was a major shipbuilder on the Thames in East London. It built many ships for the Royal Navy including HMS Warrior, the world’s first iron hulled warship. It was a major employer in East London and had a philanthropic owner, Arnold Hills, who prided himself on being a good employer and looking after his workforce. In 1895, Arnold Hills charged his “HR Manager”, James William Cearns, with the responsibility of establishing a works football team for the men. This was called Thames Ironworks Football Club. The football club thrived, soon turned professional, and was incorporated as a limited company under the name of West Ham United Football Club in 1900. Local businessmen, including the Hills and Cearns family subscribed the share capital. For most of the twentieth century, West Ham was first and foremost a community activity – a football team for the people of East London – and generations of the Cearns family served the East London community in a voluntary capacity as directors of West Ham United. West Ham established itself as one of England’s leading football clubs, playing in the top echelons of English professional football and

winning the prestigious FA Cup three times. In 1984, Sarah Gordon [nee Cearns], great granddaughter of James William Cearns , and her husband David boarded an Air New Zealand aircraft at London’s Gatwick Airport for what was to be a once in a lifetime visit to New Zealand. David has been interested in birds since the age of 11. An accountant by profession he was at one time Finance Director of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds in England and a trustee of BirdLife International. They joined Forest & Bird and became familiar with the threats facing New Zealand’s precious wildlife and the urgency of the conservation task. They rapidly fell in love with New Zealand and have become regular visitors. In November 2006, West Ham United was the subject of a takeover bid. Some of the shares subscribed for by James William Cearns in 1900 had been passed down the generations and Sarah and David found themselves with decorative share certificates that suddenly had a value. ‘The money from the sale of the shares put us in the position of being able to support causes in which we believe with New Zealand wildlife being top of that list,” Sarah explains. “We particularly want to support community conservation projects in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. As we have travelled in New Zealand over the years we have been enthused by some of the wonderful projects around the

Courtesy of David Gordon

BirdLife International Community Fund

David and Sarah Gordon during a visit to Tiri Tiri Matangi Island

country where local people have got together to conserve their local wildlife. And we have so much appreciated the warmth with which New Zealanders have welcomed us and shared their wildlife experiences with us. Now we have the opportunity to ‘put something back’ into a country that has given us so much pleasure. We hope that this funding will encourage and empower communities to start new projects or to build on existing projects. The outcome being a gain for conservation, plus hopefully a lot of fun for all concerned.” Forest & Bird has now established the BirdLife International Community Fund to support the conservation of native birds and the natural environment in New Zealand and the South Pacific, through locally managed community projects. This will initially be funded by donations made to BirdLife International by Sarah and David that will provide

approximately NZ$125,000 in the first year. “It is Sarah and David’s intention to continue annual funding at this level,” Forest & Bird General Manager Mike Britton says. “Any communitybased group will be able to apply for a grant and a small group of trustees within Forest & Bird will take the difficult decisions as to which are the most meritorious projects. Details of how to apply will be posted on the Forest & Bird website shortly.” “It is the conservation efforts of some wonderful people whom we have met over the years that has inspired us to provide this funding,” David Gordon says.”Our thanks to them all. The money is of course never enough but, if New Zealanders continue to give visitors inspirational wildlife experiences in New Zealand, who knows, maybe others will feel the same way and add their contribution to the fund.”

Become a friend of the Driving Creek Wildlife Sanctuary Trust Individual membership $20 per year, $60 for 5 years. Family: $30 per year, $80 for 5 years. Donations over $100 are recorded on a plaque to be displayed. Donations under $100 recorded in a commemorative book. All proceeds will go towards the pest-proof fence. A newsletter will be distributed. It is imperative that the fence be built over coming summer as we are now losing so many local endangered species. For rewards in art for substantial donations, please contact us. railway@driving creek.co.nz. • ph/fax 07 866 8703 • P O Box 87 Coromandel 3543.

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conservationbriefs

N July, Conservation Minister Chris Carter put pest control and replanting programmes out to tender under a scheme allowing corporates to offset their carbon emissions on the conservation estate. “... the government has agreed to permit the development of six pilot projects on public conservation land, which will be offered to commercial investors in a competitive tender run by the Department of Conservation (DOC),” he said. The programmes will follow two formats; one will provide for replanting or natural regeneration of land not under forest prior to 1989, in keeping with stipulations under the Kyoto Protocol. The other will involve major pest control initiatives on conservation land to measure and assess increases in carbon storage, both through the removal of pests which may emit methane and through increased growth in shrubs and

trees with the pests gone. DOC would not disclose details of interested parties, but hinted that some Government departments, required to go carbon-neutral by 2012, could be among them. A spokesman said successful tenders would likely be announced around September. Meanwhile, Australian scientists have announced plans to create a continentwide wildlife corridor to allow animals and plants to flee the effects of global warming. The 2,800-kilometre climate “spine” approved by state and national governments, will link the country’s entire east coast, from the snow-capped Australian alps in the south to the tropical north – the distance from London to Romania. The plan will rely heavily on conservation agreements with private landowners to link National Parks, State Forest and government land. “Given only 10% of

Dave Hansford

Conservation in a changing climate

Sites such as Otira, Arthur’s Pass National Park, could benefit from a new scheme to reduce carbon emissions from pest species.

Australia’s landscapes are going to be in formal reserves, we are going to have to be far cleverer about how we manage the country outside,” said David Linden-Mayer, who is a professor of conservation

biology at the Australian National University. Climate scientists have predicted outback temperature increases of up to 6.7 degrees Celsius by 2080. Dave Hansford

The safer way to kill rats and mice.

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

conservationbriefs Karori Wildlife Sanctuary gets $6.5 million

An artist’s impression of the new visitor and education centre.

ARORI Wildlife Sanctuary in Wellington was granted $6.5 million in June by the Government for a new visitor and education centre. The grant, plus $8 million from Wellington City Council and other funding will pay for the education centre, which is expected to attract 190,000 visitors a year. Wellington Central MP Marian Hobbs – who helped

lobby the government for the funding – said the announcement was fantastic news. “It cannot be underestimated

what an incredible asset this will be for the city and for the advocacy of conservation in New Zealand. I am delighted

that the Government has recognised the enormous potential this Centre offers.” Helen Bain

More owls at Ark in the Park

Morepork

Department of Conservation Te papa Atawhai/Dick Veitch

SURVEY of morepork (ruru) calls conducted at the Ark in the Park site in the Waitakere Ranges estimates that ruru numbers were higher there in the December-January 2006/2007 period than at timematched control locations in the Waitakeres where no poisoning was being conducted. Researchers Elisabeth Fraser and Mark Hauber of the University of Auckland say, “This could be due to higher

quality breeding grounds and habitat due to the reduction in pest numbers”. The survey was undertaken to establish whether ruru are being affected by poisoning operations at Ark in the Park where brodifacoum is a principal means of rodent pest control. The ruru is a species considered to be at risk of secondary poisoning through ingestion of poisoned invertebrates and rodents.

Go Bush in Australiasia in 2008 GO BUSH Safaris are Australia’s World Heritage Area Specialists.

Discovering Tasmania Start & finish in Launceston: 16th February to 1st March Kakadu in the Wet Start & finish in Darwin: 8th to 16th March Lord Howe Island Start & finish in Sydney: 1st to 9th May CERRA & Border Ranges Start & finish in Brisbane: 18th to 27th May Bunya Mountains-Carnarvon Gorge Start & finish in Brisbane: 13th to 20th July Fraser Island and Whale Watching Start & finish in Brisbane: 9th to 17th August Uluru & Australia’s Red Heart Start & finish in Alice Springs: 6th to 14th September Shark Bay Western Wildflowers Start & finish in Perth: 28th September

For further information: Web: www.gobush.com.au Email: enquiries@gobush.com.au or request the itineraries from: GO BUSH Safaris PO Box 9313, Wynnum Plaza, Queensland 4178

to 11th October

Life on a Coral Cay Start & finish in Brisbane: 16th to 22nd November This is the penultimate year when John Sinclair will lead advertised eco safaris. He plans to retire November 2009. John is a leading Australian conservationist and former Australian of the Year who has been organizing and personally leading safaris for 39 years. The 2008 safaris focus on World Heritage values.

10 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

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conservationbriefs

OTANICAL painter and author Audrey Eagle’s work of a lifetime has won the prestigious Montana Medal for non-fiction. Eagle’s Complete Trees and Shrubs of New Zealand (Te Papa Press) took Audrey Eagle more than 50 years to complete, and its two volumes and 800 hand-painted plates include images of every species of New Zealand tree and shrub. Audrey Eagle is a Distinguished Life Member of Forest & Bird, has been a long-serving branch committee member and chairwoman, has served on Forest & Bird’s Executive and was a founding member of the Waikato Branch. She currently lives in Dunedin and is an active member of Forest & Bird. Some of the plants depicted in the book are now extinct – Audrey Eagle was the last person to hold a live specimen of the mistletoe Trilepidea adamsii, which she saw on a Forest &

Bird field trip in Waikato and painted for the book. What began as a way of getting to know the unfamiliar New Zealand plants and their names on her arrival in New Zealand from England became a life-long passion and occupation. Audrey Eagle’s botanical drawings were first published in 1975 with 228 illustrations. After finding and painting more plants she had enough for a second volume of 405 plants, which was published in 1983. The final book includes all the paintings from the first two volumes and adds more than 170 new paintings and drawings, encapsulating her life’s work of painting and writing. She says she was lost for words when she heard she had won the medal. “I was silent – I couldn’t take it in,” she says of her initial reaction. “It was unbelievable really, a great surprise.” Montana New Zealand Book

Te Papa Press

Audrey Eagle wins at Montana Awards

Audrey Eagle

Awards judges Paul Millar, David Larsen and Morrin Rout said the monumental work was a magnificent tribute to Audrey Eagle’s vision, perseverance and consummate skill as a botanical artist. Now that the book is complete, Audrey Eagle is not

planning any further volumes. While there may yet be a few more plants to be discovered, her output to date is more than comprehensive enough to stand as the authoritative work on New Zealand trees and shrubs for many years. Helen Bain

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conservationbriefs

New Caledonia birds mapped

LANDMARK inventory of important habitats for birds and biodiversity in New Caledonia compiled by Société Calédonienne d’Ornithologie, SCO (BirdLife in New Caledonia) was launched in May. The inventory of Important Bird Areas (IBAs), Zones importantes pour la conservation des oiseaux de NouvelleCalédonie, is the result of two and a half years of research, led by Jérôme Spaggiari of SCO, working alongside other institutions, research institutes and major NGOs involved in biodiversity conservation on the islands.

Published in French, the inventory includes information on all 32 of New Caledonia’s IBAs, eight of which have specific significance for the presence of colonies of seabirds including boobies, terns, frigatebirds and tropicbirds. “This book is a great achievement for conservation in New Caledonia. It will strengthen our capacity to handle major threats to the avifauna but also to sensitise people and particularly local communities,” said Vivien Chartendrault, the new SCO Coordinator. With the release of the IBA inventory, SCO — supported

Waders return to Mangere

ORK by Watercare is bringing back the birds to Mangere, Forest & Bird’s Central Auckland Branch Chair Anne Fenn reports. She says the removal of oxidation ponds, the improved quality of effluent discharge

and coastal restoration of the Wastewater Treatment Plant site – a project in which Forest & Bird has been involved from the outset – is now showing great results reflected in the number of wading birds in the area. A recent Ornithological

by the Northern Province, the Packard Foundation, the British Birdwatching Fair and Conservation International — will develop site-based conservation work at selected IBAs, undertaking practical fieldwork and working with local communities at several IBAs within the New Caledonian lagoons, two forested IBAs of the Grande Terre, and on Ouvéa Island. Speaking at the launch Head of BirdLife’s Pacific Division, Don Stewart, applauded the SCO’s achievement: “The SCO must be congratulated on this excellent example of how the concentrated efforts of a small, devoted conservation organisation, can greatly

influence efforts to save the planet’s most threatened species.” For more information about the inventory contact SCO via email at: sco@sco.asso.nc

Society census of wading bird numbers shows that Watercare initiatives, especially predator trapping and creation of wader bird roosts, have brought a significant increase in the number of birds, particularly wrybill (ngutuparore), pied stilt (poaka), bar-tailed godwit (kuaka) and South Island pied oystercatcher (torea). Threatened North Island New Zealand dotterels (tuturiwhatu) have also successfully fledged chicks there in the last three years. Hundreds of birds that were forced to roost elsewhere with the advent of the oxidation

ponds have now begun to return. Recent stoat-trapping and habitat restoration has also seen dotterels fledging in this urban Auckland area. Wrybill once numbered around 300 birds here, peaking at about 900; now there are some 600-900 normally found in the area, with a peak of around 3,800. “It is great to see such a positive outcome, given Forest & Bird’s lengthy involvement,” Anne says. “I just have to smile to see birds flocking in the middle of Auckland urban area – it’s such a blast!” Helen Bain

Rod Morris

North Island New Zealand dotterel are breeding at Mangere.

12 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

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conservationbriefs

NEW agent for controlling possums and rodents has been launched in New Zealand. The agent comes in two products called NO Possums and NO Rats Cholicalciferol Gel Bait and contains vitamin D3. It has been approved by the Department of Conservation’s (DOC’s) Pesticide Advisory Group and is said to be highly effective yet safe enough to be used without restriction. Dr David Morgan of Landcare Research who helped develop the product, says it has undergone 15 years of testing and that possums are highly susceptible to it. “A small dose can kill a possum but a weka would have to eat one kilogram to get a lethal dose,” he says. “This was developed as an alternative for use without a licence. It is not intended to displace 1080.” The recently registered agent was developed by Christchurch-based company Kiwicare in collaboration with Landcare Research and has been designed specifically for New Zealand’s environmental conditions and demands, according to Dr Morgan. Landcare Research independently verified the product’s effectiveness and palatability as part of the registration process. Kiwicare says their NO

Possums and NO Rats products are part of New Zealand’s most comprehensive range of DIY bug control and property maintenance products for use around the home, garden and farm. For example, they say the NO Possums Cholecalciferol Gel Bait is highly palatable and attractive to possums, but comes with a low risk of secondary poisoning, especially to working dogs. NO Possums Cholecalciferol Gel Bait contains 8g/kg Cholecalciferol, which is highly toxic to possums and rodents, but has relatively low toxicity to birds and aquatic species. When used as directed, the bait remains potent and palatable for more than 26 months, even under conditions of high rainfall and humidity, according to independent field research. Flavoured to be highly attractive to possums, the gel has been dyed green to repel birds and contains Bitrex to prevent ingestion by children and domestic animals. Kiwicare products are widely used by DOC staff, says Dr Alastair Fairweather, a senior technical support officer with DOC’s research, development and improvement division. “It is because of DOC’s continued involvement with

Rod Morris

New pest control agent

Possums are highly susceptible to a new gel bait containing vitamin D3.

the company and awareness of trial results, that DOC staff have confidence in the products,” he says. “The products are effective if used

correctly, as one of a variety of controls used to ensure the animals do not become bait shy or develop a resistance to certain products.”

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Withering Heights Climate change is a hot topic for conservation. Dave Hansford looks at the implications for biodiversity and some of the solutions being developed.

T’S odd to think that one little colourcoded map could portend so much chaos. Aotearoa stretches across Brett Mullan’s computer screen, blotched yellow here, orange there. He’s proud of this, the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research’s (NIWA’s) latest climate model for New Zealand. Until now, he relied on global simulations from agencies such as the Intergovernmental

14 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Panel on Climate Change. They showed New Zealand as four red mountains sticking out of the Tasman Sea, and he had to extrapolate from there. Mullan, a NIWA scientist, now has the supercomputing power to test climate projections for New Zealand, by New Zealand, and the results are frankly unnerving. On his map, pools of red dot the spine of the South Island, centred over the Southern Alps. One look at the key tells you that our mountains are about to change beyond recognition. Red, by NIWA’s reckoning, means a rise in temperature of as much as six degrees Celsius. Wait a minute; Mullan’s saying that the temperature increase will be greatest where the air is already coldest? “That’s right,” he says. “This is because you’re losing permanent snow cover in the Alps. The

DAVE HANSFORD/ORIGIN NATURAL HISTORY MEDIA

Spaniards dot the banks of Blue Creek, near Mt Owen in Kahurangi National Park. Under just a three degree Celsius increase in temperature, it is predicted that as many as 360 (60%) of native alpine plant species will become extinct due to habitat loss and displacement by exotic weeds.

moment you lose snow cover, it exposes bare rock, so the ground can warm up a lot more.” It’s the first of a number of nasty surprises. In 2003, botanists Stephan Halloy and Allan Mark looked at what climate change might mean for alpine biodiversity. They based their work on a modest threedegree increase, but nevertheless concluded that we stood to lose between 200 and 300 indigenous alpine plant species. The major effect, Halloy says, is the submersion of alpine islands, by which he means that isolated high alpine environments – quite frequently with their own endemic species – will disappear. As temperatures climb, the habitat simply evaporates. But habitat loss is just the lead of a one-two punch – even as the mountain environment becomes less suitable for endemic plants, invading exotics find it increasingly to their liking. “A lot of the invaders are by definition pioneering species, and from a physiological point of view, there’s no doubt that carbon dioxide enrichment enhances growth rates and the competitive capability of those species,” Halloy says. Wilding pines have already been found at 2400 metres on Mt Ruapehu, and introduced heather has started climbing too. Many more weed species lurk below the treeline, pre-adapted to capitalise on an emerging opportunity. The pair calculated that New Zealand’s alpine habitat – currently reckoned at 11% of our land area, or some 30,000 square kilometres – could shrink to just 2.4%, or 6700 square kilometres within a century. And that’s a three-degree Celsius increase scenario. Mullan’s model, remember, projects a rise possibly double that. But Landcare Research’s Matt McGlone says our alpine environment is tougher than that. “We don’t have climate,” he says, “we have weather. You can get snow at Christmas time, or 20 degrees in Christchurch in midwinter. This buffers us against the extremes. Latitude for latitude, our plants and animals tend to have longer breeding periods, and they tend to be adapted to a variable climate. They have a head start. “I think a lot of what’s going to happen is already factored in; we shouldn’t expect huge amounts of change.” Take treelines, says McGlone; “There’s absolutely no sign that treelines have risen, despite half a degree of warming over New Zealand since the turn of the century”. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

The heat is on CLIMATE change is already impacting on New Zealand’s wildlife in ways subtle yet potentially disastrous. Department of Conservation staff have already noted that: Conditions at Taiaroa Head, near Dunedin, have become hotter and drier, making it increasingly difficult for albatrosses to breed there successfully. The surface ground temperature of the shallow soils over basalt bedrock can reach 50 degrees Celsius, which forces nesting albatrosses to stand up, exposing chicks to fly strike and eggs to overheating. Warmer winters leave bats (pekapeka) more vulnerable to predation. In cold winters, bats tend to nest individually or in pairs in small tree cavities. In warmer winters, the bats are more active, forming larger roosts in larger cavities – with larger entrances – which are more easily accessed by predators. Research from Cook Strait islands has shown that the incubation temperature of tuatara eggs determines the sex of the offspring. The pivotal temperature is 21 degrees Celsius, above which virtually all progeny are males. The population on North Brother Island already has a pronounced male bias, with ramifications for its continued survival. Some subantarctic species such as rockhopper penguins and southern elephant seals have declined by 90% on Campbell Island. NIWA research has linked the crashes to falling ocean productivity and the dispersal of prey species linked to warmer sea temperatures, although climate change has not been specifically named as a cause. Chatham Island shags are suffering a similar decline.

•

John Sawyer of DOC is already working on a rescue plan for plants.

“Not only that; we have historical data going back 18,000 years, when New Zealand’s been about one and a half degrees warmer, and we’re confident that treelines were lower than they are today.” Halloy accepts such “valid scepticism”. None of this is new, he agrees. “These things have happened in the past; things have gone extinct and re-evolved again. But the thing is that it happened on a scale of hundreds of thousands or even millions of years. That’s not the kind of scale that we’re looking at today; we’re talking one or two generations.” John Sawyer, a Department of Conservation (DOC) botanist, has already started on a rescue plan with the New Zealand Plant Conservation Network. “Alpine plants in the South Island at least have a little more mountain to climb,” he says, “but throughout the North Island, they may go extinct quite quickly, because they have nowhere to go.” He’s talking about nothing short of an evacuation. “We need to ensure that alpine plants are held ex-situ.” That’s already happening at Percy Scenic Reserve, just outside of Petone, Wellington, where staff are holding more than 500 threatened alpine species for safekeeping, collecting seed, propagating and generally doing all they can to keep the lines going. The network is looking too, at setting up a national seed bank. And where that can’t happen, says Sawyer, “We could probably get some 90% of the national flora into some sort of cryogenic storage. Preferably you’d use both – the more options the better.” The rest of Mullan’s map – the montane forests, lowlands and coasts – is coloured various shades that average out around three degrees warmer by 2100. The broad prognosis for these lands is now wellknown: more rain for the western regions, more drought for the east. More extreme, more polarised weather.

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•

Rod Morris

Rising temperatures affect the sex of tuatara as they develop in the egg.

•

Dave Hansford

Alpine plants in the North Island may become extinct sooner than in the South Island, in a warming world.

What’s less understood is what that means for lowland biodiversity, but a link has emerged between warmer weather and mast years, when beech trees produce prolific seed. “Given that masting is only possible if plants can accumulate the resources for flowering and seeding, and climate change clearly adds energy and may add water, then I think we will see more mast years,” says DOC scientist Theo Stephens. When beech seed is abundant, the extra food prompts a breeding irruption among rats and mice. Introduced mustelids – stoats, weasels and ferrets – tune their own breeding closely to that of their prey, so pest numbers explode, with catastrophic consequences for native wildlife – and financial ones for DOC. A report released last year, Impacts of Climate Change on New Zealand’s Natural Heritage and Conservation Management predicts: “Significant predator control may be required at key sites every 1-2 years, rather than every 4-6 years.” But climate change may yet offer a few bonuses for biodiversity. Replanting trees 16 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

to store carbon is an “offset” offered to corporates and others who cannot reduce their emissions any further. By investing in such programmes, they can avoid financial penalties under a carbon charge or cap-and-trade scheme. David Whitehead, a science leader at Landcare Research, says for most people, that means planting pines. But he’s thinking differently. “We’re looking at allowing the natural regeneration of shrubland – mainly manuka and kanuka. We know there’s at least one and a half million hectares of marginal land in New Zealand, which is also terribly erosionprone”. “At present a lot of that land is in uneconomic pastoral activities,” he says. “We’re arguing that if the price of carbon reaches about ten Euros (NZ$ 17.60) a tonne on the stock exchange, carbon farming may prove economically viable compared with livestock.” The Government’s Permanent Forest Sinks Initiative was passed into law last year, offering carbon credits to landowners who retire farmland.

Whitehead says he’s had “incredible interest, particularly from Maori communities around the East Cape.” Department of Conservation DirectorGeneral Al Morrison sees another opportunity. “One of the key drivers in addressing climate change is storing carbon, and there are lots of ways of doing that,” he says. “People have begun thinking ‘Well, that’s about planting trees,’ but it might be about pest control.” “When you fly over an area that’s been ravaged by possums, and compare it to an area that’s been pest controlled, you can see the health of the forest canopy, and that’s carbon. It might not be that easy to measure, but it is storing carbon.” The fact that Kyoto rules have yet to connect reforestation with pest control fazes Morrison not one jot. “We can be in at the policy level arguing for a broader scope – for more things to count – and we’re certainly in there doing that.” That’s because there are corporates here and overseas looking for ways to offset their carbon liabilities under Kyoto, which says that if they can’t reduce their own carbon dioxide output, they can at least claim a rebate by investing in programmes elsewhere. Morrison sees “obvious opportunities” for such companies to invest in pest control over the conservation estate. “For example, a corporation puts X million dollars into pest control, and there is a good solid science-based measurement on how much carbon that stores – and those systems are all in place now – then it’s valid for that company to say; ‘We are reducing our carbon footprint at X tonnes per year – and we’re doing so by sponsoring pest control’.” It’s a long bow, and intricacies remain to be worked out, but Morrison says he has “significant players talking to us at the moment”. But deer and goats might be the least of our problems in a warmer future. Mast years, even alpine extinctions, pale before what everyone agrees is “the biggie”. “Climate change is going to facilitate naturalisation and spread of many exotic species that will out-compete natives for resources – or will be serious predators,” Theo Stephens says. “Exotic invertebrates – snails, ants, wasps, moths, mites ... are going to keep on arriving and some will establish and cause havoc. Some diseases are already well established. Avian malaria has clearly already spread south and inland and may be responsible for much of the loss of native birdlife that we had previously put w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

down to mammal pests. And this is set to get worse.” McGlone agrees. “We already have a lot of plants of subtropical origin in the country, and we also have things that are invading, like ants and mosquitoes – I find the biodiversity implications of that a little worrying.” “The models aren’t too good, I tell you, when you move into a frost-free [climate] – you suddenly put the indigenous biota ... at a disadvantage to the exotic fauna.” Jose Derraik, advisor in human health at Biosecurity New Zealand, is keeping an eye on potential invaders. “We’ve done extensive risk analysis on quite a few invasive ant species worldwide – the ones that we regard as potential threats to New Zealand. Because these species come from the tropics, temperature is one of the limiting factors for their establishment here,” he says, “If they enter New Zealand, they’d be most likely to establish in buildings or heated places. But in a warmer climate, they would be more likely to establish outside. “Our risk analyses say that a warmer climate is likely to favour the establishment of a whole bunch of species – ants, for example.”

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Rod Morris

Southern elephant seals have declined by 90% at Campbell Island.

O what can we do? At Biosecurity, Communications Advisor Phil Barclay offers the status quo; “Any climate change is obviously going to be a gradual process ... so it’s about making sure we have the right procedures at the border, also about what we could be doing better postborder as well.” Matt McGlone says climate change pales beside “the things we’ve already done to this country. The biggest threats will be the ones that we already have, so we have to understand the phenomenon, and continue doing what we are doing now.” For Theo Stevens, it’s about giving our flora and fauna a way out. “The most

ecologically useful thing to do is increase the protection of lowland biodiversity – particularly non-forest ecosystems – and its connection to higher elevation environments. This gives lowland biota somewhere to go as things warm up.” “We need to secure [lowland remnants on private land] so that then we can do translocation and restoration to offset isolation and fragmentation. But it’s hard to be optimistic, because this emphasis ... is so far removed from public opinion and hence, political support.” Dave Hansford of Origin Natural History Media is a Wellington-based writer and photographer.

FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Photographic memory

A childhood affinity with nature led Tui De Roy to a passion for its conservation. Michael Szabo met the wildlife photographer on a recent visit to Wellington.

SLANDS with unusual wildlife have left their mark on Tui De Roy. The awardwinning wildlife photographer learned her trade during her formative years on the Galapagos Islands, made famous by Charles Darwin’s The Origin of Species and the role of its finches in developing his theory of evolution by natural selection. Then 15 years ago she came to live in New Zealand to get away from the ever-increasing human population on the remote archipelago. But moving to New Zealand was, she insists, an accident. After a five week visit to see a friend she’d met guiding in Antarctica, she bought a property in Golden Bay and the following year got residency. She hasn’t looked back since, commenting that coming here was everything she had dreamed of – “There is an overwhelming sense of nature”. Speaking at the recent Beehive launch of the Friends of Galapagos New Zealand

– a new conservation group – Tui recounts the story of her childhood on the Galapagos Islands at a time when very few people inhabited them. Her lecture is accompanied by dozens of photographs she has taken over half a lifetime spent there, painting a memorable portrait of the volcanic islands and their unique wildlife, which includes flightless cormorants, marine iguanas and giant tortoises. The images are often close ups. A pair of blue-footed boobies courting in a volcanic landscape, or a marine iguana looking into the camera’s eye. Each image – unmistakably from the Galapagos – reflecting a deep affinity with her subject. But it is her final point that puts it

A group of critically endangered Chatham albatrosses on The Pyramid, Chatham Islands.

all into perspective; in the end, she says, conservation is about feeling and passion. So what was it that sparked hers? I ask later. “Its all about the experience and the closeness, and being immersed in a world in which I often feel more at ease than in our real world,” she says in an accent that sits somewhere between Belgium and California. “When I was on the subantarctic Bounty Islands a couple of years ago, friends who were with me sharing the camp were having really bad nights because all night long there were crested penguins squawking at the top of their

Tui De Roy

The ancient Maud Island frog has no croak, no webbing and eggs that hatch into froglets instead of tadpoles. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Tui De Roy

Mount Ruapehu erupting in 1996.

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A Buller’s albatross feeding its chick, The Forty Fours, Chatham Islands.

a tiny rowing boat, searching quiet inlets and scrambling through mangroves in search of birds’ nests. “Going out and finding nesting birds really sharpened my interest, so from there it really became a natural progression to record them with a camera,” she says. “I took my first photos when I was 12 or 13 and haven’t stopped since.” She recalls in detail something her father said to her when she first took an interest in photography. “He said ‘be very careful before you take a picture’. He was sketching on a scrap of paper and as he drew an iguana he said: ‘Here’s your iguana. You can put the frame out here above the horizon and the rocks it’s sitting on, or you might decide to put it here below the horizon with the iguana off to one side and you’ve got an entirely different photograph.’ So its what you leave out of the picture that matters more than what you put in it – that’s my motto.” Later in her teens she started nature guiding in the Galapagos and met more people visiting from overseas. One of them was Les Line, editor of Audubon magazine, who was based at the New York headquarters of the National Audubon Society, the BirdLife International partner organisation in the USA. He took an interest in her photography and published her first photo essay and cover photograph.

Tui De Roy

voices, yet I had the best night ever because I felt just like the world was right. I was completely at ease and immersed in the world of the penguins.” “Maybe I feel that way because I grew up in a place where I saw more animals than people for the first ten or fifteen years of my life.” She moved there at the age of two with her parents in the 1950s and stayed on till she first left in the 1970s. Her book “Galapagos – Islands Born of Fire” recounts her upbringing there in what was a tranquil and virtually uninhabited corner of the world. “Making that connection with nature can be at all sorts of levels, but it has to be a hands on, one-on-one conection with nature. Before people become good conservationists they have to fall in love with nature.” “Which is why I think Tiri Tiri Matangi Island has made a huge difference in making people realise that they can do something for conservation themselves, so close to Auckland.” So what was it about photography that caught her imagination? Her father was always interested in photography, she says, so when the family moved from Belgium to the Galapagos they brought with them a supply of film and the means to process them. She became seriously interested in wildlife when she met a visiting ornithologist doing a local survey. Afterwards she spent long days alone in

Since that time she has been a photographer and an active supporter of conservation, publishing her work in leading natural history publications, including BBC Wildlife and National Geographic, and in eight books, including her most recent, “New Zealand – A Natural World Revealed”, a collaborative work with Mark Jones that includes more than 450 images. Tui De Roy

Tui De Roy

The haunting song of the kokako.

“In 15 years I feel I’ve only just scratched the surface in New Zealand. In that time l’ve been living in Golden Bay seeing part of it disappear,” she laments. “I used to see wekas around the house and penguins down on the beach. Neither of them are there now.” The big difference with Galapagos, she observes, is that New Zealand has already had two massive waves of human-induced extinctions. “Galapagos really hasn’t had one yet.” While comparing notes on photographic techniques, I mention that a National Geographic photographer once told me that he goes on assignment with a particular composition in mind and tries to find it. “That’s the opposite of what I do,” she insists. “For example, on Gough Island in

the South Atlantic recently I spent three weeks finding the right place that summed up the island and the albatrosses.” “To me a good photo is being there – when the magic happens.” “I also like to to portray the world from the animals’ point of view – to show the animal in its habitat.” “Graphically that often means getting down on the ground where I try to look at them as they would look at each other.” “I like to try to take the picture as if I wasn’t there, which is quite different from what a lot of photography is, often very much a case of getting in your face – that to me is intrusive.” “Basically it’s telling their story – where they live or how they lean against the wind or how they ruffle their feathers.” It’s a goal she goes a long way to realise. Take her upcoming book on the world’s albatrosses, which is another collaborative project with Mark Jones. The title sums it up: “Albatross: Their World, Their Ways”. She has now photographed all but one of the world’s albatross species, which has included making trips to some of the world’s most remote wild places. Her last trip was to Gough and Tristan Islands in the South Atlantic where she added Tristan albatross to her extensive library of photographs. Soon she will be sailing to the subantarctic islands in her own yacht and after that the only place left to visit will be the Kerguelan Islands where the world’s

The Waimakariri River flowing out of Arthur’s Pass National Park.

rarest albatross species, the Amsterdam albatross, lives. There are just 90 pairs left. The subantarctic trip starts shortly – in the middle of winter – where she will photograph more albatrosses for the new book before publication next year. She will, she says, possibly make it to Campbell Island where she may be able to photograph albatrosses in snow. She nearly got a photograph on Gough of an albatross in the snow but for safety reasons she wasn’t able to tramp alone the hundreds of metres uphill to where they were likely to be. So maybe she’ll get the photograph down at Campbell after the visit to the Auckland Islands, she says. If anyone can, Tui will; such is her determination to show the rest of us the secret world of the albatross. Michael Szabo is Forest & Bird’s Communications Manager and editor of Forest & Bird.

Tui De Roy and Mark Jones Tui De Roy

Flourishing Flora

Whio on Flora Stream

Maryann Ewers explains how the local community is helping threatened species such as whio and native mistletoe return to the Flora Saddle-Mt Arthur area of Kahurangi National Park.

HE Friends of Flora (FoF) community conservation project in Kahurangi National Park, north-west Nelson, has gone from strength to strength since it started in 2001. The project benefits the wealth of endemic bird species that live in this dramatic landscape, which include blue duck (whio), kaka, yellow-crowned parakeet (kakariki) and weka, as well as several species of Powelliphanta land snail, which are also threatened. Friends of Flora was originally set up by locals who walked regularly in the Flora Saddle-Mt Arthur area and were concerned at the decline in the number of native birds they’d witnessed in recent years, particularly whio, numbers of which had plummeted in 10 years from five pairs to just two resident males. The aim of the project was to implement a conservation strategy to bring about the protection – or return – of threatened endemic plants and animals to the Flora Stream catchment area, on the northern flanks of Mt Arthur in Kahurangi National Park. With the exception of some possum w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

control being done by the Department of Conservation (DOC) at the time, there was no other protection work being carried out in the area until the Friends of Flora set up its initial trap line. Six years on the project consists of 57-kilometres of trap lines, protecting approximately 5000-hectares of predominantly beech forest along with some subalpine shrub and tussocklands. There are 638 trap stations over 10 lines throughout the area, with the main core line following the Flora Stream. Eighty-five local volunteers have signed up to the FoF list, including 25 regulars who take part in the monthly monitoring of tracking tunnels throughout the trapping area to monitor introduced predator activity. Friends of Flora volunteers also control and maintain 460 trap stations, with Motueka DOC Area Office handling the rest. The main focus is on controlling stoats, so every station has a stoat trap (DOC Masher 200 and Fenn traps on the core line), but the FoF lines also have a rat trap (Victor) at most stations in an effort to keep the stoat trap free for its intended use, which seems to work about 75% of the time. Some of the outer lines also have a possum trap (Sentinel) at every station. A team of very enthusiastic high school students from the local Motueka High School’s conservation group made most of the rat tunnels for the project and they have been known ever since as the “rat trappers”, winning several awards for their dedication. Several among them have also gone on to become valuable members of FoF.

Friends of Flora recently finished extending trap coverage to include Gordon’s Pyramid – an alpine tussock top on the slopes of Mt Arthur with outstanding karst limestone features. This line has 66 stations, completing the entire Flora catchment area which has been encompassed with trap lines that are no more than one kilometre apart and traps at 100-metres intervals, which is considered the optimum arrangement to ensure adequate coverage of the entire area to control stoats. With almost five years of bird monitoring data now, and anecdotal evidence from DOC and the public, it appears that numbers of all the endemic bird species are increasing. For the past two years during November the Nelson Branch of the Ornithological Society has run a comprehensive programme of bird monitoring along the core trap line – the track which follows the Flora Stream through the valley. They complete a five-minute bird species count at every station in the morning and repeat it in the afternoon over three weekends and plan to continue this each November to provide an accurate and independent measure of trends in bird numbers. There is also a native mistletoe recovery programme which locates plants in the area, protects them, and harvests seed in the autumn to use to help regenerate mistletoe in the area. The flagship species for the project to date has been the whio. In March 2004 DOC released 10 young whio, which had FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Friends of Flora Friends of Flora

The drachophyllum forest between Flora Saddle and Mt Arthur attracts rifleman and New Zealand tomtit.

been hand-reared at Peacock Springs in Christchurch. Sadly, six of these young ducks died over the winter months through malnutrition. It was found that the birds struggled to find enough insect larvae to sustain them, with the stream being at such a high elevation (650 to 800 metres), having to contend with a particularly cold and wet early winter, and with the extra flow of water washing the larvae downstream. It was also evident that one of the things they were lacking was vital knowledge of how to feed themselves in such difficult conditions, which is only learned from real whio parents. The remaining four whio were taken back to Peacock Springs to recover and then released the following summer into one of DOC’s Operation Ark sites in the Wangapeka River area where the streams are at a much lower elevation, and contain more food. Encouragingly, these efforts paid off when one of these females produced a family of her own last spring. Last summer DOC released a young wild female whio (named Maryann) into the Flora Stream just before she was able to fly, in the hope that she would adopt the stream as her home. She has remained since March, spending much of her time in the company of one of the two males there. She will be able to breed this spring, so the hope is that she will pair up with one of the two males and have her first clutch this year. The next step for FoF and DOC will be the reintroduction of great spotted kiwi, which used to roam the area before invasive mammalian predators arrived. With Kahurangi National Park now included on New Zealand’s Tentative List of World Heritage Areas, restoring our national icon to this dramatic part of its range would be a fitting way to add substance to a future nomination for World Heritage status. For more information about Friends of Flora see www.fof.org.nz

Kea can be seen in the Flora Saddle – Mt Arthur area.

Helen Campbell

Friends of Flora

A founding member of Friends of Flora, Maryann Ewers jointly runs guiding operator Bush and Beyond.

Pest trapping is protecting Powelliphanta hochstetteri hochstetteri in the Flora Saddle area. 22 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Bill Rooke and Maryann Ewers. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

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(titipounamu) and more. Trapping here also helps protect invertebrates such as the giant north-west Nelson weta and the land snails from introduced predators. After saying goodbye to Maryann, Bill and Elsa we continued on to the Gridiron Rock Shelters. The children thought that the Upper Rock Shelter with its three bunks, swinging seat and open fire was great, and that the Lower Rock Shelter, beside the roaring torrent of Gridiron Creek and impressive huge rocks, along with the shelter’s large bunk area up a ladder was even better. So we will be back to stay here! We went back along the track in the early evening dusk to Flora hut where we settled in to cook our evening meals. Anyone for a kiwi version of a hot dog – a grilled sausage in a damper? Dinner was followed by coal-baked bananas and marshmallows on sticks. Sunday started for some with a deafening dawn chorus of bird song – testimony to the work of the FoF – while the rest of us slumbered on until the sun shone. After breakfast we checked out the Flora Stream, now dropping in volume from the day before. We floated oranges down the stream, checking out the velocity, the eddies and whirlpools – even where the currents went upstream. We learned why overhanging trees are so important to in-stream organisms by providing debris for food, shelter in roots during storm events and shading to cool the water and stop loss of oxygen. On our way to Flora we had all seen how sedimented the Motueka River had been and marvelled at the clear tannin-

Thomas, Simon, Jack and Peter... off they go

coloured streams running through the native forests of Kahurangi National Park. Before lunch the group walked up the track towards Arthur hut, meeting others including large family groups. We looked at the lichens and mosses on our way. We also saw how forests regenerate with fallen tree bases providing opportunities for regrowth, as well as the break in the canopy encouraging smaller trees to replace the fallen tree. And we investigated hollow trunks and found another giant land snail on the track. Then we headed back to Flora hut for lunch where the boys had fun sliding down the hill along with some other kids also having lunch at this spot. It was an excellent weekend. So the planned removal of Flora hut by DOC will be a loss to groups of young children such as the Kiwi Conservation Club, as well as those who go further into Kahurangi National Park – to the Saulisbury Tablelands, the Cobb Valley or the Karamea Track. It is intended that the Flora hut will be replaced by a shelter. Helen Campbell is Nelson/Tasman Branch KCC Coordinator.

Helen Campbell

ND didn’t it rain! Just what a Kiwi Conservation Club (KCC) coordinator does not want – torrents of rain on the night before a weekend camp in Kahurangi National Park. But still, we decided to go ahead because every other time the Nelson/Tasman Kiwi Conservation Club had tried to have a weekend at Flora hut in Kahurangi National Park in the last few years, the trip has been cancelled due to snow or terrible storms – typical changeable spring weather, really. And with the Department of Conservation (DOC) planning to remove the hut in the next few years we wanted to take a look around and see the wildlife and where it lived. As it happened, we had two fine days – and the rain brought us an abundance of wonderful glossy carnivorous land snails – Powelliphanta hochstetteri hochstetteri – now there is a mouthful especially for young children keen to learn. And our group of children, although small in number, was very keen to learn – in fact, Simon reckoned he had learned more from those two days at Flora than he had at school. Richard and Peter were privileged to see a whio swimming swiftly in the rainswollen Flora Stream soon after they arrived at the Flora hut on the Saturday. Was it the young female whio, Maryann? Or was it another unrecorded bird? Unfortunately we did not see it again so could not check for leg bands. Another reason for the healthy land snail population is the Friends of Flora (FoF) community group (www.fof.org. nz) that have been working with the Department of Conservation (DOC) trapping predators over nearly 5000hectares with about 600 traps. Bill, Maryann and Elsa, stalwarts of FoF, talked to us after lunch on the Saturday about their programme and took us on a trap line, removing the rats and mice and refilling the bait stations. At every second trap we listened and watched out for different birds. Maryann explained which birds she had seen and heard and the calls they made. Bill said that the FoF project is designed to help protect the endangered flora and fauna of the Flora Stream catchment area. By trapping stoats, rats and possums they are helping to make the area a haven for birds including the whio (blue duck), kaka, yellow-crowned parakeet (kakariki), New Zealand falcon, New Zealand robin (toutouwai), weka, tomtit (ngirungiru), kea, grey warbler (riroriro), rifleman

Helen Campbell

Springtime at Flora

Dave Klement of Friends of Flora changing the egg in one of the stoat traps. FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

There are 111 Maui’s dolphins left and Forest & Bird wants to save them. Helen Bain explains how and why.

HERE is a wry appropriateness to the figure of the total estimated population of Maui’s dolphin: 111. If ever an animal’s plight was deemed to be a 111 emergency, this would be it. If the survival of a patient was this critical, the paramedics would be crowding round the bedside, frantically attempting lifesaving measures. So why aren’t we acting with urgency to save Maui’s dolphin from extinction? The Maui’s dolphin is the world’s rarest marine dolphin, and is found only off the north-west coast of the North Island. It is a genetically distinct subspecies of the Hector’s dolphin, which is found off the South Island coast. If you are lucky enough to see one of these extremely rare dolphins, you could recognise it from any other dolphins found in New Zealand waters by its distinctive rounded dorsal fin, and its diminutive size

24 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

– only about half the size of a common dolphin at just 1.2-1.6 metres long and weighing just 35-50 kilograms. In the nineteenth century Maui’s dolphins were found around most of the North Island coastline, but are now found only off the north-west coast from Maunganui Bluff north of Dargaville to New Plymouth. While the predicament of Hector’s dolphins is serious enough, with only around 7000 individuals left, the Maui’s dolphin’s tiny population of 111 individual animals means it is on the brink of extinction – it is listed on the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List of Species Threatened with Extinction as critically endangered. Any species with such a small population is at great risk of extinction, but the situation for the Maui’s dolphin is even more precarious because its population may include fewer than 60 mature animals – including probably as few as 25 breeding females. Maui’s dolphins’ leisurely breeding habits – similar to their fellow endangered species the kakapo – do not help the

species’ chances of surviving – female dolphins do not start breeding until they are seven to nine years old and even then give birth only once every two to four years. This slow rate of reproduction makes the dolphin population particularly vulnerable to deaths caused by human activities such as fishing. Its genetic diversity is thought to be very low, increasing its vulnerability to environmental change and population decline. Population modelling studies show Maui’s dolphin cannot withstand any human-induced deaths if it is to survive as a species. It is not as if we do not know what the risks are. By far the most serious threat to Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins is set nets. Department of Conservation (DOC) figures show that over 60% of deaths of Hector’s dolphins are caused by set nets (in cases where the cause of death is known). Although no entanglements of Maui’s dolphins have been reported since a set net ban was put in place off the north-west coast in 2003, set nets still pose a threat to Maui’s dolphins in areas where they are found outside the set net ban area. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

L: Steve Dawson. R: DoC

Sanctuary or extinction – Emergency 111

If dolphins become entangled in the nets set by recreational and commercial fishermen, their small lungs – about the same size as human lungs – quickly fill with water and they drown. In the last six months alone, four Maui’s dolphins have been found dead, each death taking the species a step closer towards extinction. However, it may not be too late to save Maui’s dolphin – but only if we act urgently. Forest & Bird is calling for a nationwide ban on set nets to protect Hector’s dolphins (and the many other protected species that are killed in set nets) but further measures are needed to provide the extra level of protection that the critically endangered Maui’s dolphin requires. That is why Forest & Bird is proposing a marine mammal sanctuary throughout the Maui’s dolphins’ range. As well as protecting dolphins from set nets, a marine mammal sanctuary would also protect them from other human-induced threats to their survival, such as trawling by the snapper fishery, boat strikes, marine farming, pollution, sand mining and the potential threat from tidal energy generation. Limiting these threats would allow Maui’s dolphins the chance to recover to more healthy population numbers. There are only two marine sanctuaries

in New Zealand waters at the moment. One protects New Zealand sea lions around the subantarctic Auckland Islands and the other offers some protection to Hector’s dolphins around Banks Peninsula. A marine mammal sanctuary would ensure that Maui’s dolphins are protected from set nets in all the areas where they are found. Since 2003 the dolphins have been partly protected by a set net ban within four nautical miles of the north-west coast (excluding the inner harbours), but this restriction does not go far enough. Recent findings by Otago University have confirmed that Maui’s dolphins venture into the west coast North Island harbours, which are currently not included in the set net ban. As Maui’s dolphins spend much of their time in shallow water (less than 100-metres [m] deep) a set net ban on all coastal waters less than 100m in depth would be a much more effective protection measure than the current four-nauticalmile boundary (which doesn’t include the harbours) to protect them. Activities that don’t threaten Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins – such as line fishing and drag netting – would still be allowed inside a marine mammal sanctuary. Virtually every species of fish targeted using set nets can be caught using other

Proposed Marine Mammal Sanctuary KEY Proposed marine mammal sanctuary to 100 metre depth contour

Proposed 4 nautical mile trawl ban

methods that don’t harm the dolphins. The action we take this year – the International Year of the Dolphin – will be crucial in determining whether Maui’s dolphin survives or is lost forever. Helen Bain is Forest & Bird’s Communications Officer.

Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society

CONSERVATION CALENDAR 2008

NEW ZEALAND CONSERVATION DIARY 2008

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Nikau trunk in the Pororari River valley, Paparoa National Park (Craig Potton)

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

The peoples’ bird A popular movement to “Save the Kiwi” is sweeping New Zealand. Neville Peat considers why so many have rallied to the cause.

HE world’s “most unbirdlike bird” – the New Zealand kiwi, a biological and behavioural oddity – is now one of the most actively cared-for birds in the world thanks to wide-ranging community efforts to keep its North Island populations on the mainland. Backed up by ongoing scientific work, advances in technology and an array of funding sources, these community efforts span all regions of the North Island where kiwi live in the wild. Collectively, they are nothing short of phenomenal. There are dozens of projects, thousands of volunteers, and a swag of funders contributing millions of dollars to the kiwi cause. An emblem for over 100 years, the kiwi is benefiting from an eleventh-hour bid to save its North Island mainland populations from disappearing altogether. Predator-free sanctuaries, “mainland islands” and intensively managed tracts of forest from Northland hill country to the Rimutaka mountains just north of Wellington seem almost certain to ensure

26 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

North Island kiwi populations survive in the wild. Twenty years ago, when I began studying the conservation status of kiwi for a book entitled The Incredible Kiwi, the future appeared dismal. The call of the kiwi, especially the North Island brown kiwi, was the scream of a bird under siege. Today it is more a call of hope and triumph against the odds. It is the call of the people’s bird. The people have rallied, creating by far the largest popular movement in support of a threatened native bird that New Zealand has ever seen. It is a story that has been reported here and there by the media over the past ten years, without full realisation of its significance. To quote the adage, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. I set out to record as many of the projects in my new book on kiwi, Kiwi – The People’s Bird (Otago University Press, December 2006). I was at first impressed and then astonished by the diversity and intensity of the effort. Forest & Bird branches, schools, iwi entities, district councils, regional councils, landcare and private trusts, businesses and corporations, pub charities, farmers, lifestylers, zoos and other captive kiwi institutions, and the largest supporter

John Shorland

Western North Island brown kiwi

of all in terms of funding – the Bank of New Zealand (BNZ) Save the Kiwi Trust (grants totalling over $6 million, 1991 to 2007) – have together contributed more to kiwi conservation than the Department of Conservation (DOC), which is officially mandated to do the job. So what motivated this community-led movement in aid of kiwi and when did it start? A key year was 1996, when a landmark study of kiwi predation confirmed the introduced stoat as kiwi enemy number one. The study by a group of leading kiwi scientists, including John McLennan and Hugh Robertson, concluded that stoats were decimating chicks and juveniles and the biggest single threat to the survival of kiwi in the wild. The loss was around 65% in the study areas. At that rate – and throw in serious levels of predation by uncontrolled dogs, feral cats and ferrets – kiwi were doomed. The Bank of New Zealand, in association with the Department of Conservation and Forest & Bird, had already begun assisting kiwi conservation projects through a kiwi recovery programme but community projects were few and far between. In 1996, on the eastern coast of the Coromandel Peninsula, the Kuaotunu Kiwi Trust was formed by 22 local landowners, including local iwi Ngati Hei, with support from DOC, local government, Forest & Bird’s Waikato Branch, and several sponsors. It was ground-breaking stuff – a 4,100hectare (ha) forested headland managed for kiwi protection. Intensive trapping was carried out on about 20% of the area. Within two years the Kuaotunu Trust was reporting enhanced survival for chicks in the core area, and by 2004 a survival rate of 38%, which is well above the breakeven point. In 1998, Forest & Bird launched its “Kiwis for kiwis” campaign, advocating two major initiatives – the creation of 11 large kiwi conservation zones in 11 regions from Northland to Fiordland, and a fundraising target of $10 million a year for ten years. They seemed overly ambitious targets at the time but they certainly raised awareness of the kiwi’s plight – and that heightened awareness in turn helped ignite a community and private-sector response. I suspect at the time Forest & Bird could hardly have imagined a private-sector response of the sort that has followed in recent years. Today there are significant privatelymanaged sanctuaries with predators fenced out at Maungatautari (2006, 3,400-ha) in w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

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Ecoworks New Zealand Ltd Neville Peat

Kiwi protectors: Greg Blunden (right), who manages the Aroha Island Ecological Centre in the Bay of the Islands, and trapper Tammy Daniels checking out stoat traps on Aroha Island, which is a breeding haven for kiwi.

Steve Sawyer, of Gisborne-based Ecoworks New Zealand, attaches a transmitter to a North Island brown kiwi at the Whinray project at Motu, East Coast, with the help of five-year-old Nina Kwak.

Kerry Oates/Enviro Research

South Waikato, Cape Kidnappers (2006, 2,200-ha), Orokonui Ecosanctuary (2007, 300-ha) near Dunedin, Karori Wildlife Sanctuary (1999, 252-ha) in Wellington and Lake Rotokare (230-ha, fence due for completion in 2007). Except for Orokonui and Rotokare (both of which hope to establish kiwi in the next couple of years), these predatorexcluded sanctuaries and a number of smaller fenced refuges hold secure kiwi populations in natural settings. In the year 2000, in association with its national biodiversity strategy, the Government accorded urgency to kiwi protection by creating five large sanctuaries – three in the North Island (Whangarei area, Tongariro and Coromandel) and two on the South Island West Coast targeting the most endangered kiwi populations, the Okarito rowi and Haast tokoeka. Since the millennium year, communityled kiwi conservation projects in the North Island have multiplied almost beyond belief, spreading to every region, as if some kind of critical-mass effect was being played out – an idea whose time had come. Support from land-owners and farmers, many of them retired and looking to give something back to the land, has been pivotal. There are some 30 projects in Northland alone. Inspiration for many of them has come from the New Zealand Landcare Trust’s Northern Regional Coordinator, Helen Moodie, and the BNZ Save The Kiwi Trust’s National Mentor for Advocacy, Wendy Sporle, who lives near Kaitaia. Most of Northland’s kiwi live on private land, and across much of the North Island significant numbers are found outside national parks and other conservation land; hence the importance of community involvement. There are an estimated 30,000 brown kiwi in the North Island, divided into four races (Northland, Coromandel, Western and Eastern). In pre-human times there would have been several million. DOC has set bottom lines – a minimum of 500 pairs for North Island kiwi in the large kiwi zones where they are being managed, and a minimum of 300 pairs for the two most seriously threatened populations in the South Island, both of which are under management. “Managed” means taking measures to control or eliminate predators, assist reproduction (mainly through Operation Nest Egg and Operation Chick Recovery) and enhance habitat in clearly defined areas. The 500-pair target for managed populations in the North Island assumes a population of around 1,500. That’s considered to be a robust number in terms of genetic health

A young western North Island brown kiwi from the Tongariro area is about to get a health check and transmitter change. Called Pokere, this kiwi is helping project managers understand territory size and use. Pokere uses a very large home range.

FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

by which he means the production of juveniles through Operation Nest Egg, kiwi crèches, sanctuaries and mainland islands in sufficient number to stock larger unmanaged areas. Three projects he is advising are future “kiwi farms”. Cape Kidnappers/Ocean Beach Wildlife Reserve should produce enough juvenile kiwi in the future to stock areas of the Kaweka Forest Park in Hawkes Bay. And Whareama and Puketukutuku Peninsulas at Lake Waikaremoana are both expected to contribute juvenile kiwi to the whole 5,000-ha catchment of Lake Waikaremoana in years to come. “I think we can look forward to having kiwi in the large wilderness areas. The remoter the forest, the better for kiwi. Isolation is part of their defence. Look at the great spotted kiwi of North-west Nelson – they are barely declining and I think that’s because their habitat is remote, stoats are few in number and they are not bothered much by hunters’ dogs.” ‘There would have to be an entirely new threat for North Island brown kiwi to disappear now – disease, for example.” Uncontrolled dogs remain a major threat to kiwi in many North Island areas. Populations most at risk are those that are reliant on small patches of bush surrounded by farmland.

Besides “kiwi farming”, aerial 1080 operations across large areas to knock down stoat and rat numbers – and possums – are critical, according to Dr McLennan. At Tongariro Kiwi Sanctuary last year, predator numbers dropped dramatically. No kiwi were found dead as a result of the 1080 operation. Tongariro recorded a highly encouraging 60% survival rate of kiwi chicks. “I know it doesn’t make sense to dump 1080 en masse into a natural forest. But neither does it make sense to introduce predatory mammals into such a system in the first place,” says Dr McLennan. As I contend in my new book on kiwi: “Defying adversity in many guises (principally alien predators and the destruction of great tracts of its habitat), the kiwi has hung on long enough on mainland New Zealand to welcome the arrival of something akin to the cavalry.” For over 100 years, New Zealanders have freely exploited the kiwi’s name and curious shape without much regard for its welfare in the wild. Now, it’s payback time. Dunedin author Neville Peat’s third book on kiwi is Kiwi – The People’s Bird (Otago University Press, 2006).

Neville Peat

Conservation Minister Chris Carter (Forest & Bird, May 2007) admits his department can’t tackle the big issues alone and the “massive growth” in community and private-sector support for kiwi conservation, he says, demonstrates New Zealanders’ recognition of this. What New Zealanders have clearly recognised is that their national symbol – the bird that gives them their colloquial name – is in trouble. It remains to be seen whether they will mobilise to save Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins with such wideranging intensity. Havelock North-based consultant ecologist John McLennan, a stalwart of kiwi conservation for over a quartercentury, says the catalyst for the surge of community support involved a combination of things, including availability of funding, new technology, and the power of networking – emails, websites, newsletters and so on. ‘There’s one other important factor: people realising they can make a difference; they can save their national bird.” A member of DOC’s Kiwi Recovery Group and a board member of the BNZ Save the Kiwi Trust, Dr McLennan says the tools exist now to sustain viable populations of kiwi in the North Island. He has coined the term “kiwi farming”

28 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

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Taranaki kiwi comeback

John Shorland

ARANAKI Kiwi Trust Chairwoman Jenny Steven gets a warm, fuzzy look when she talks about her “babies”. Formed five years ago because of community concern about the plight of kiwi in the region, the efforts of Steven and the trust could be the difference that means the calls of these iconic birds will still be heard in Taranaki forests in 100 years time. Steven says the trust works with the Department of Conservation (DOC) trapping over 7500-hectares (ha) in Egmont National Park to rebuild and sustain kiwi populations there, and has also been working with DOC for three years under Operation Nest Egg taking kiwi eggs from the wild in Taranaki so they can raise the chicks in protected environments till they are big enough to fight off attacks by predators. Last year they released 18 kiwi on the slopes of Mt Taranaki and expect to hatch the same number this year. The eggs are sourced from two areas in east Taranaki and are taken to Kiwi Encounter at Rainbow Springs in Rotorua for incubation. Once the chicks are hatched they are taken to Bushy Park near Wanganui where they stay behind the security of a predator-proof fence till they are big enough to fight off attacks by stoats. Bushy Park Conservation Officer Daniel Hurley says Bushy Park’s “kiwi crèche” gives the youngsters protection from predators, yet lets them gain “life experience” and foraging skills in a “wild” environment in the park’s 98-ha of forest. He is pleased with the progress made by his young charges, which typically gain 150-200 grams(g) a month, quickly reaching their target weight of 1200g so they can be released into the wild. So far Bushy Park has had a 100% survival rate – there is little risk to the chicks once predation is eliminated. The chicks are regularly checked and dosed for parasites, but so far have not suffered any

A group of school children releasing western North Island brown kiwi into the wild in Taranaki forest.

major health problems. From Bushy Park the grown chicks are released into the wild at Egmont National Park. Steven says that in the areas where the eggs are sourced, the threat of predators means kiwi chicks have a very low chance of surviving to adulthood – the chances of them doing so are only about five per cent. On Mount Taranaki the chicks stand a much better chance of being able to go on to breed themselves, thanks to the protection of the predator trapping programme. The intensive predator control is now in its third year and it is planned to increase it to cover 11,000-ha. While there had previously been thousands of kiwi on the mountain, numbers there had fallen to just 30-40 pairs, largely due to predation by stoats and probably dogs as well, Steven says. It is hoped that the combined efforts of Operation Nest Egg and predator control will rebuild the mountain population. It is hoped that the efforts of the trust

and others are paying off. An annual survey recording the number of kiwi heard calling on the mountain will indicate whether the population is growing, but as kiwi don’t start calling until they are four to five years old and the surveys have only been conducted for two years, it will be another few years before the new arrivals start to be heard. Steven says that the cost of transferring eggs under Operation Nest Egg is high – $1500-2000 per kiwi – but it is hoped that the programme may not be needed longerterm, if predator control can be effectively conducted over large areas of kiwi habitat, so kiwi can safely breed in the wild. “There is predator control but it is tiny compared to the total area where kiwi live. We hope that eventually we will have intensive and wide-scale predator control so that projects like Operation Nest Egg aren’t needed any more.” Helen Bain is Forest & Bird’s Communications Officer.

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Palau’s national bird, the Palau fruit-dove

Invasive pests and climate change are the main threats to fragile species and habitats across the Pacific. Michael Szabo reports from the frontline in Palau. Photographs by Mandy Etpison.

ESPITE the thousands of kilometres of ocean between New Zealand and Palau in Micronesia, there’s a certain sense of deja vu when you step into the forest there. Like New Zealand’s forests, Palau’s contain native palms, tree ferns and vines. Palau has an endemic fantail, its own “big-footed” bird of the forest floor – an

endemic megapode – giant fruit-eating pigeons and abundant white-eyes. There are even endemic frogs and the only native land mammals are bats. Sound familiar? And like New Zealand, Palau is a marine biodiversity hotspot with an abundance of reef fish species, sharks and dolphins. Arriving in Palau from a Wellington winter you also notice the differences. The

Michael Szabo

The beach at Ulong, one of Palau’s Rock Islands.

heat and humidity for a start. The moist tropical rainforest grows down to the coral reef here in the scenic southern Rock Islands. Yes, there are bats, but mostly they’re huge fruit bats flapping over the forest or hanging upside down from fig trees. Tiny red honeyeaters feed busily on nectar. Vibrant fruit-doves coo from the branches. Small dark swiftlets flicker overhead. Luminescent white terns and black noddies float above the forest canopy and elegant tropicbirds dance in pairs high above the islands. In addition to colourful fish species like the aptly-named mandarin dragonet and Napoleon wrasse, the reef also supports marine turtles and dugongs, and saltwater crocodiles inhabit the mangroves. As in the rest of the tropical Pacific, Palau’s coral reef dependent marine species are especially at risk in a changing climate, while its endemic birds are also at risk from habitat loss and the introduction of invasive species, especially rats. Take the small island of Ulong where the rare Palau ground-dove lives alongside the not so rare Pacific rat. On a trip there with a group of visiting conservationists, it’s fascinating to watch a pair of these birds feeding on the sunlit forest floor a few metres away, like tiny wind-up pigeons. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Mandy Etpison

Fantails and fruit-doves

CIMAS

Mandy Etpison

Mandarin dragonet

CIMAS

Palau fantail is one of 44 fantail species in the world which range from the Indian subcontinent to New Zealand.

Hawksbill turtle

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Mandy Etpison

Equally attention grabbing is the Pacific rat that climbs through the canopy overhead. After seeing the ground-doves, the group gets up and walks a few metres only to see a Norway rat saunter across our path and stop to nibble on something virtually at our feet. Since we’re in Palau for the BirdLife International Pacific Partnership meeting, hosted by the Palau Conservation Society (PCS), it serves as a timely example of the invasives problem facing endemic birds here. Ulong is one of hundreds of islands and islets in Palau’s vast lagoon, which stretches over 100-kilometres from end to end. It’s a lure for visiting tourists eager to see the coral reefs and scenic islands, and an increasingly important part of the country’s tourism economy. But there are no bag checks or inspections for rats here. We packed and checked our own, though none of the other boats that arrived during our visit appeared to. During the meeting we’re told that of Palau’s 10 endemic bird species, the megapode, ground-dove and giant whiteeye are on the IUCN (World Conservation Union) Red List. This is why PCS plans to carry out its first island eradication of invasive species at 112-hectare Kayangel Atoll, the stronghold of the endangered

The Palau megapode is thought to be a separate species to its Micronesian namesake.

megapode. Target species for eradication here include rodents and feral cats. PCS are also identifying the country’s Important Bird Areas (IBAs) and conducting bird surveys to determine the most critical habitats. Local guides are being trained to conduct bird surveys as part of the IBA project, in an effort to create community awareness, promote

alternative livelihoods and discourage bird hunting. So it was that we visited Ulong with local guide, Shaft. To help complete the ecotourism picture PCS is helping fund publication of the first photographic guide to the birds of Palau compiled by writer Doug Pratt and photographer Mandy Etpison. With three more endemic bird species here set to be

A male Palau ground-dove moves across the forest floor like a tiny wind-up pigeon.

Mandy Etpison

CIMAS

Napoleon wrasse

Mandy Etpison

A male Palau monarch feeding its chick. This species adorns the nest with spider egg cases.

Daniel V Klein

The Palauan subspecies of Nicobar pigeon is one of two giant pigeon species on Palau.

split from their Micronesian cousins – the local megapode, kingfisher and cicadabird – this part of Micronesia is an increasingly interesting prospect for birdwatchers and ecotourists. Out of Palau’s population of 21,000, PCS has some 500 members so it focuses much of its efforts into community-based conservation through involvement with local committees and the existing protected areas system, and has also set up the National IBA Steering Committee. Its marine work focuses on the creation of marine conservation areas as part of Palau’s Protected Area Network, a strategy which is being mirrored on the land. PCS also wants to see natural resource use planning based on common community goals and visions, says Director Tiare Holm. “The strategies are carried out through targeted education and awareness work, policy recommendations, applied research and community consultations,” she says. Awareness raising is vital, she says, giving the example of the endemic flycatcher and white-eye species on the nearby island of Guam, which were wiped out by the invasive brown tree snake in the 1980s. “This story has been effective in getting the conservation message across to community members about the threat posed by invasives.” The other big issue for the marine ecosystem is climate change, she explains as we head towards one of the marine protected areas in the lagoon. Palau’s coral reefs are already on the frontline. A high proportion of coral was bleached when warmer than usual temperatures hit the reef in 1998. While there has been some recovery since then, coral at many reef sites is generally below 30% of pre-1988 levels at three metres depth and less than 50% at 10 metres depth. That rodents and feral cats are to be eradicated to create a pest-free haven at Kayangel Atoll is a positive step, but in itself it isn’t going to stop rising sea temperatures and coral bleaching. That will take a major shift in the way the rest of the world sources its energy, which is something Palau on its own doesn’t have a lot of say in. So it was encouraging that BirdLife International has established a global taskforce to research and advocate on climate change issues which PCS will now be represented on, giving Pacific states a stronger voice as part of a global conservation partnership. Birds of Palau by Doug Pratt and Mandy Etpison is published later this year. For more information email: etpison@palaunet.com Michael Szabo is Forest & Bird’s Communications Manager and editor of Forest & Bird.

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DoC

goingplaces

Kapiti Island Nature Reserve and Marine Reserve

apiti Island Nature Reserve is one of our most important conservation sites for native species. Synonymous with the origins of conservation in New Zealand, it was here that the first chapter in the history of Forest & Bird was written, and many pioneering pest eradications took place. In the late nineteenth century the first nature reserves were created at Little Barrier/Hauturu Island, Resolution Island and Kapiti Island to protect some of New Zealandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unique scenic landscapes and wildlife. Kapiti itself was designated as an island reserve in 1897, providing a haven for native species relatively free from introduced predators, such as stoats and weasels, which were newly introduced but already spreading across the country. Returning from the First World War in Europe, Captain Val Sanderson visited Kapiti Island and found the native forest heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d known in his youth silent and overrun with cattle, goats and sheep, browsing out the undergrowth. With a small band of supporters, he started a campaign to restore Kapiti Island to its former glory. Encouraged by public support and the success of the campaign, Val Sanderson sought to widen the groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s activism and the Native Bird Protection w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Society was established at a public meeting in Wellington on 28 March 1923, later to become the Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand. Five-kilometres (km) offshore from Paraparaumu Beach, Kapiti Island is 10-km long and about 2-km wide, covering an area of 1965-hectares. The highest point, Tuteremoana, is 521-metres above sealevel and the peak of a now submerged mountain range that once reached the South Island. Over the decades since it was declared a nature reserve, all of the introduced mammalian predators have been eradicated from the island and a long list of rare and threatened native bird species have been successfully restored here. There is also a marine reserve adjacent to the island, so a visit holds in store the prospect of seeing rare birds such as takahe and kokako, as well as a variety of native seabirds, dolphins and seals at the right time of year. By the time the Department of Conservation (DOC) was set up in 1987 many of the invasive species had been removed from the island. Goats were eradicated in 1928, followed by cats, deer, sheep, cattle, pigs and dogs. Possums were eradicated between 1980 and 1986 in the first successful operation of its kind. Pacific rats (kiore) and Norway rats were eradicated using aerial application of

Forest & Bird founder Captain Val Sanderson

brodifacoum in 1996, leaving the island free of introduced mammals. Stitchbird (hihi), kokako, takahe, brown teal (pateke) and saddleback (tieke) have all been transferred to Kapiti since the 1980s with earlier releases including kiwi and weka. The island is also the focus of an innovative plan to save a threatened and isolated colony of short-tailed bats (pekapeka) in the Tararua Forest Park, by establishing a new population on the island. Takahe with chicks

DoC

Site description

Nancy Jordan Collection

Seventy kilometres north of the capital, Kapiti Island is an excellent place to glimpse what this part of New Zealand was like before invasive mammalian species arrived. Michael Szabo rediscovers one of our oldest nature reserves where Forest & Bird had its origins.

DoC Rod Morris

Where and when to go

CCESS to the island is by commercial launch from Paraparaumu Beach (see Fact File). From the landing point at Rangatira Flat there is a level walking track that winds through scrub and emergent coastal forest. As you walk through this area you can usually see small flocks of red-crowned parakeets (kakariki) and kereru. Kaka fly noisily over the forested hills. Whiteheads (popokatea), fantails (piwakawaka) and grey warblers (riroriro) chase down insects in the scrub. Tui and bellbirds (korimako) flit about overhead, while weka and takahe frequently walk the tracks. In fact, it is quite possible to spend the whole of a one day visit in this area, especially if you’ve got young children with you who may not be up to the walk to the top which can take three to four hours return, depending on your pace. One of the special birds of summer which can be seen at Kapiti is the longtailed cuckoo (koekoea). This slender bird with a very long tail is most often seen flying over the forest up the hill from the vantage of the open ground in front of the whare on the flat. Start by looking up and listening for their harsh almost cat-like call. If you hear it, watch the area the call came from and with patience you may see the bird fly over the canopy to a new perch. You’ll need to be ready with your binoculars as they can fly across quite rapidly. With luck one may fly down over the forest and glide towards the trees by the beach, as one did when I was here during a visit a couple of years ago. The level track eventually leads to Wilkinson Track which rises through mature forest to the Tuteremoana lookout. As you walk up the track you’re likely

34 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Little spotted kiwi

to encounter saddlebacks, New Zealand robins (toutouwai) and New Zealand tomtits. Saddlebacks are usually heard before being seen so it is useful to know their call beforehand. You can listen to sample sounds at www.nzbirds.com/birds/ birdsong.html The staccato alarm call of the saddleback is distinctive, as is the rusty brown “saddle” on their back and the two bright orange wattles at the base of the bill. Summer is probably the best time to see the island’s birds and native plants. Many of the plants and trees flower in summer such as the fluffy cream floral display of the giant tree daisy, the deep mauve-red flowers of mahoe or giant violet and the delicate pink and purple blossoms of tree fuchsia (kotukutuku). It is also possible to see hihi (stitchbird) close up on Kapiti. Perhaps the best place is the first picnic bench on the Mackenzie Track where there is also a sugar feeder that attracts them. You’re also likely to encounter curious weka here. Further along, about two-thirds of the way to the top, the forest is more mature making it one of the best areas to listen out for or see kokako, which breed on the island. Once at the top you’ll find the lookout which has a commanding view to the south and west of the island. Another conveniently located picnic table here makes for a scenic lunch spot where you’re also likely to encounter weka. There is an alternative though much steeper route back down called the Trig Track, which is a right fork from the Mackenzie Track as you walk down. This track will take about the same time to walk and can be quite hard work, especially if it is slippery. The attraction of this route

Tree fuchsia (kotukutuku) in flower.

is that it is the road less travelled, but be warned that it is hard on the knees going down so a walking pole can be useful here. It is also possible to see kokako from this track. I’ve seen a pair feeding in the crown of a tree just off the track about three-quarters of the way down. At first I thought I could hear a kereru feeding on fruit but the bird seemed somehow more elusive than a giant pigeon. So I waited a few minutes and was rewarded with the sight of two feeding above me. The alternative to landing at Rangatira and walking the Wilkinson Track is to land at the North End. The loop track from the North End landing takes two to three hours to complete and winds through flat open shrubland and grassland. In addition to the tui and bellbirds here, harriers (kahu) often hunt over the scrub and kingfishers (kotare) perch on lookouts near the lagoon. Takahe can sometimes be seen along a grassy section of open ground by the track marked by interpretation panels. Shortly after here the track splits. You can follow the track left up the hill through regenerating forest and along an extensive ridge to a lookout point with another dramatic view out to sea. Many of the same forest birds can be seen along this track as on the Rangatira Flat, but you are less likely to see kokako, hihi and tieke. If you have time at the lookout, keep an eye out for passing seabirds gliding over the sea as albatrosses and giant petrels sometimes move through this area on their way to or from Cook Strait. From the lookout the track heads back down to the lagoon. At the T-junction you can either turn left for a view of Okupe Lagoon and the beach or turn right and head back to where you started

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Saddleback (tieke)

Tui De Roy

to walk the north end track. Okupe Lagoon is a freshwater refuge for New Zealand scaup, shoveler, grey teal, paradise shelducks, pied stilts and brown teal, particularly during the March to August hunting season when they seek safety here from the mainland. The nocturnal little spotted kiwi was once abundant on both the North and South Islands, but is now restricted to just three locations. Most of the remaining population is on Kapiti Island with smaller populations on Tiri Tiri Matangi Island and at Karori Wildlife Sanctuary. It is possible to see little spotted kiwi during an overnight stay at the North End. Kapiti Island Nature Lodge offers accommodation and you can book to join one of their night walks for a chance to see this smallest of the five kiwi species. The 21 square kilometre marine reserve, which was established in 1992, is separated into two sections. The smaller part is on the exposed west side while the other connects Kapiti Island to Waikanae Estuary on the east, forming a continuous area of protected land, sea and estuary habitats. The three most common marine habitats of the Marlborough Sounds and Wellington region occur here in a relatively small area. These boulder bottom, sheltered

Rod Morrris

Hihi (stitchbird)

reef and sand bottom habitats support a rich variety of marine life. Colourful marine sponges occur on the rocky reefs. Starfish, soft corals, sea anemones, octopuses and reef fish such as butterfish, blue cod and red mullet are resident here, along with banded and scarlet wrasse. Fur seals use Arapawaiti at the northern end of the island as a winter haul-out. Whales including southern right and humpback pass through the area on migration, while common dolphins are more regular visitors. Various seabirds can be seen in the area, including red-billed gulls, Australasian gannets and little blue penguins. In the right sea conditions flocks of fairy prions, fluttering shearwaters and white-fronted terns can be seen offshore. Watch out for a tern being pursued by an all-black arctic skua during summer. With the variety of species here, regeneration of the forest and variability of the seasons, no two visits are ever the same in my experience, which is what keeps people coming back again and again. If you haven’t been already, a visit is well worth the effort. Michael Szabo is Forest & Bird’s Communications Manager and editor of Forest & Bird.

Fact file Access and tours

PERMIT from the Department of Conservation is required to visit Kapiti Island Nature Reserve. Permits cost $9 per adult and $4.50 per child. Permit fees can be paid by cash, cheque (made out to “Department of Conservation”), eft-pos or credit card. Credit card payments can be made by telephone. You can get a permit from the DOC Wellington Visitor Centre, Conservation House, 18-32 Manners Street, PO Box 10-420, Wellington 6143. Tel 04 384 7770; fax 04 384 7773; email: wellingtonvc@doc.govt.nz Private boats are not allowed to land at Kapiti Island Nature Reserve. Two commercial launch services are licensed to take visitors to the island. You must arrange your own transport to and from the island using one of these two licensed launch services: Kapiti Marine Charter: tel 04 297 2585; mobile 0274 424 850 Freephone 0800 433 779 or www.kapitimarinecharter.co.nz Kapiti Tours Ltd: Freephone 0800 527 484 or www.kapititours. co.nz Return fare tickets cost $45.00 per adult, $20 per child (5-15 years old) and $2 (under 5) Launches depart around 9am – 9.30am from the Kapiti Boating Club, Paraparaumu Beach, and return around 3.15pm – 4.15pm. The journey by sea takes around 20 minutes in calm weather. Paraparaumu Beach is approximately a one hour drive north of Wellington. It is also possible to catch a train from Wellington station and a connecting bus from Paraparaumu station to near the Boating Club. Check local timetables for details. Kapiti Island Nature Lodge offer overnight accommodation and guided tours at the north end. They can be contacted at PO Box 28, Otaki, tel (06) 362 6606, mobile 021 126 7525 or email minnie@ kapitiislandalive.co.nz w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Okupe Lagoon

North End Public Loop Track

Kurukohatu Pt

Western Kapiti Marine Reserve

Private Property

Waiorua Bay

son Tra

Wilkin

Trig Pt Tuteremoana Trig Tra ck 521 m

Rangatira Point

Kaiwharawhara Pt

Eastern Kapiti Marine Reserve

Waterfall Bay Tokomapuna Is.

West Pt

Motungara Is. Tahoramaurea Is. Wharekohu Pt

Tahirimongo Pt

Lookout Shelter Toilet

FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Itinerant Ecologist – Geoff Park

The remnant ecologies of Waitangi Park

he is quite matter-of-fact about the eels that were discovered when the Waitangi Stream was re-opened to the sea, travelling in culverts right up to the Basin Reserve. She’d dearly like to catch some and show them the stream up which their ancestors meandered from its harbour estuary, up into the flaxy reaches of the fleeting swamp that would become the famous cricket ground. But if eels haven’t yet found Megan Wraight’s Waitangi Park, others certainly have. Where previously you hardly saw a soul in a wasteland of concrete and unkempt grass, people – if not skateboarding in a skate-boarding paradise – throng paths through oioi and pingao, and by curving, watery channels of coastal sedges waving in the wind. For a while it seemed that the slice of Wellington’s waterfront between Oriental Bay and Te Papa was never going to be anything other than a mess of construction. Then suddenly it was bursting with life, and thrilling the heart of any Wellingtonian who has imagined their harbour’s shoreline before its native plants and processes were extinguished; when a stream poured to the sea across a windy

gravelly flat, sometimes damp with rushes and sometimes ponded in a sedge-edged lagoon. It is a difficult imagining. The tidal meetings of Wellington Harbour’s streams and rivers were distinctive native environments occurring nowhere else, and with particular patterns of plants and animals. But courtesy of the New Zealand Company choosing their meagre gravelly flats for the country’s first planned European settlement, they were some of the first to disappear. And they did so long before anyone talked of nature conservation. Bronze plaques proclaiming Shoreline 1840 arcing through downtown Wellington attest to the colonial desperation for level acres that had the Company’s settlers “reclaiming” every metre of the harbour’s flat shore. A few artists painted Te Aro Flat’s gravelly meeting with the tide as open country without bush, but none seemed to have seen anything beautiful enough to portray it in detail, like some colonial artists painted other Wellington coasts. Elsdon Best said the Waitangi was a “sluggish stream that ran down … to the beach near Courtenay Place, near which a small lagoon often lay, which sometimes

broke through the retaining bank and flowed into the sea”. It did so, he added, on the afternoon of 4 March 1853, “when small islets, supporting flax-plants, were seen floating in the harbour. The Maoris stated that formerly a taniwha occupied the lagoon, but that, having a foreknowledge of the coming of the Pakeha, it forsook its haunt prior to their arrival”. There is precious other history though, to guide anyone today endeavouring to recreate how this part of the harbour’s shore might have appeared before commerce gained dominion over it. But Megan Wraight has imagined superbly, drawing her inspiration from the Wellington coast’s wilder corners – Turakirae and Sinclair Heads, Terawhiti, Tapu-te-ranga, Makara and Pencarrow’s lakes: Kohanga-piripiri and Kohanga-te-ra, recreating what she calls their “remnant ecologies”. “Thousands and thousands of photos must have been taken”, she says of the process in which her team of young landscape designers interrogated the few bits of Wellington’s flatter shorelines where native vegetation has survived human settlement.

Sara McIntyre

Looking down to the sea through the succession of gravel beach plantings in the excavated graving dock.

36 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

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would recognise. In the most seaward one, based on the storm beach at Makara, prostrate mats of Disphyma australe, Raoulia hookeri and Pimelea prostrata look as though they have been there forever, not just a summer. Further inland, in the “Tapu-te-ranga”, “Ohiro Bay – Sinclair Head”, and “Turakirae” terraces, coastal Spaniards, sand coprosma, piri-piri and poa tussocks are throwing seed from their first year’s flowering, and by “Waipapa Stream”, the most inland terrace, pohuehue are winding through thickets of flax, tauwhinu and coastal coprosmas, and the gravel in which they were planted last winter is already almost invisible. My ecologist eye is admiring of the exactitude with which Waitangi Park

replicates Wellington’s original shoreline, but Megan insists that her return-tonature design is a cultural park, not some new nature reserve. She has designed a landscape derived from the natural ecology of the Wellington coast’s last wild traces, and stocked it with plants raised from seed gathered in them. In the process, pretty well all the species characteristic of its gravel flats, stream mouths and lagoons have been returned to the city’s shoreline, and established in the patterns in which she and her team have seen them living in the wild. She’s got them back here, and over the years to come, they will do what they will. As she says, smiling at their first summer’s success, “It’s over to them now.”

Sara McIntyre

Megan Wraight has been the architect of nature’s return to Wellington’s shoreline. She’s the genius behind the rocky promontory of ngaio, taupata and flax at the mouth of Aotea Lagoon and the sudden karaka grove nearby. But their genesis, she’s the first to say, was in the 1997 Waterfront Masterplan to, somewhere around the inner harbour, strip away the changes its shoreline had undergone, and reveal the original ecology. Because nothing had survived, the objective became to reconstruct it instead. Its flowering is in the part of Waitangi Park where the lineaments of a former graving dock, abandoned in the 1900s, have been ingeniously re-excavated to create an open sweep to the sea; a broad gravel flat on one side, and on the other, a sequence of wetlands. A dramatic contrast of the wet and the dry of a stream and a beach meeting. One division of the wetland comprises superb bright-green rows of tall club rush Bolboschoenus fluviatilis, alternating with the ponded water of Waitangi Stream, like some great sculpture. In another, oioi, jointed rush, stands in open water, looking as at home as I have ever seen it in the wild. Around it, a host of other wetland species: the Baumeas, articulata and tenax; Elaeocharis acuta, Juncus krausii and Schoenoplectus validus, the lake club rush, and a wild thicket of more Bolboschoenus – within which a raupo plant has established itself. The gravel flat is a succession of seven distinct plant communities that anyone familiar with Wellington’s wilder coasts

One of Waitangi Park’s new wetlands.

Sara McIntyre

The designer of Waitangi Park, Megan Wraight, among the upper gravel beach plantings

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

in the field

The trouble with deer Words by Ann Graeme Illustrations by Tim Galloway

38 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

John Barkla

Gerry Field

LL pests are victims – victims of our stupidity in introducing them to a new environment where they will be endlessly “persecuted”. But persecute them we must if we are to enable our native plants and animals to survive. Some pests win little sympathy in New Zealand. There is no call to “save the ship rat”, nor enthusiasm to protect the goats or the savage little weasels, stoats and ferrets that we have let loose in our forests. Possums could have some supporters here (which is why the possum fur industry is a double-edged sword for conservation), while pigs have their own following, but they all lack the grace, the beauty and the sporting attraction of deer. So when it comes to killing pests, no one speaks up for introduced rats or goats or possums, but the deer hunters come out, guns metaphorically blazing, to save the deer. There are seven introduced species of deer living wild in the native forests and high country of New Zealand. Only Northland remains free of them. Of the seven species brought here, red deer are the most widespread and Sika deer reach the highest altitudes, grazing the alpine plants. Deer hunters would persuade us that deer are less damaging than, say, goats or wallabies. It is true that these species compound the damage done by deer and it is true that, where these other two species occur, they too need controlling. But deer remain widespread pests of critical importance. Deer browse, nibbling the succulent seedlings, stripping bark from the saplings, trimming the fresh shoots from the shrubs. And as they digest all this vegetation they burp, as do all ruminant animals, increasing the methane burden on the atmosphere because methane is a potent greenhouse gas. Deer also have hooves, which are sharp and hard and erode the banks and edges of streams and trample the soft duff that cloaks the forest floor. So the forest loses its carpet of green and its soft underlay of dead leaves, the layers that sponge up the rain and then slowly release it over weeks and months. This is what a catchment is for, to catch the rain and dispense it slowly, protecting the land below from floods and providing water in times of drought. And the land below the forests is the land we farm and where we build our towns.

Rock Burn, Mount Aspiring National Park. Original (black and white) photo-point established in 1970 by Professor Alan Mark, which was shortly after a programme of sustained wild animal control began. Colour photo shows the same site in 1999. In 2007, it was difficult to rephotograph the site owing to the regrowth, according to John Barkla.

And worst of all, the browsing deer strike at the heart of the forest’s integrity – its next generation. Deer nibble the tiny seedlings, nipping off the growing tips and destroying the infant trees on which the forest depends. And the forest needs regeneration as never before because possums chew the life out of the big, old trees. It’s not as if native forests have never been browsed before. Remember those great browsing moa that roamed the forests for millions of years? Perhaps deer are simply replacing moa? It’s an engaging argument, but it doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. Deer and moa are quite different animals and have (or had) quite different effects on the environment. Moa walked on big, broad feet, not unlike gumboots. Deer have hard little hooves like stiletto heels which are far more damaging to the forest floor. Moa had beaks. They could only pluck leaves and shoots. Deer have teeth and tongues and are far more versatile. They can nibble bark and tiny leaves, mow the densest turf, wrench small branches and grind up twigs. But a few deer – just a few – will surely do little damage? Just a nibble here and there. But in no time at all, a few becomes

a thousand and, ironically, recreational hunting has no effect on their numbers. Sure, hunters shoot deer but the hunting effort is not enough to effectively control their numbers in New Zealand. A study in the Kaimanawas, in an area where recreational hunting pressure was seven times the national average, found that even at that level the hunting failed to kill enough deer to prevent the degradation of the forest. Professional deer cullers hunting for a living, not for pleasure, can control deer. In the 1950s and 60s they succeeded in greatly reducing deer numbers in the South Island. And the commercial markets, first for live deer and more recently for wild venison, seriously dented the deer populations. But both these markets have collapsed and deer are on the rise again. There are now many more deer roaming our forests than there were ten years ago. The conclusions are inescapable. Recreational hunting doesn’t control deer and deer are a critical element in the suite of introduced pests that are destroying our native ecosystems. So deer cannot be exempt from pest control just because they provide sport for a small section of the population. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

HE pest problems in our forests are real and urgent, but they’re not always that easy to see. Degradation takes time and the loss of native species is almost imperceptible. The forests are becoming stripped down and simplified. The birds notice. They notice the lack of flowers and fruit. So do the unnamed and unobserved invertebrates which depend on shaded microhabitats that have been made open and dry, on the berries that no longer litter the forest floor or are eaten by rats, or on the plant species that are now w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

rare or have become locally extinct. Yet we grow accustomed to the loss of complexity. Early European explorers complained of fighting their way through dense jungle and of battling through green walls of shrubs and creepers. Now many forests are more like parks with open vistas, carpets of unpalatable crown ferns and groves of silver tree ferns – too poisonous for deer to eat.

Next time you walk in your forest, look again. Look at the seedlings and the saplings. Look at the epiphytes and the tumbling ferns. What do you remember? What is missing? What is different now? FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

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Iconic lakeside landscapes such as this one at Lake Heron now have better protection.

High country lakes get a better deal The Government’s announcement that it will exclude lakeside land from the tenure review process has been heralded by Forest & Bird as a major victory in its campaign to protect conservation values in the South Island high country. Conservation Minister Chris Carter and Land Information Minister David Parker announced in June that pastoral lease properties will be excluded from tenure review, “if they have highly significant lakeside, landscape, biodiversity or other

Deer in their sights Forest & Bird Southland-Otago Field Officer Sue Maturin has been appointed to a new ministerial panel that will review the management of introduced deer, chamois, tahr and pigs in the wild. The panel was set up by Conservation Minister Chris Carter in June, as part of the Government’s supply and confidence agreement with United Future, which has been active in supporting the hunting lobby. The panel, which is to be chaired by former Science Minister Margaret Austin, also includes Hugh Barr of the New Zealand Deerstalkers Association, Graeme Nugent of Landcare Research and Garry Ottmann of Game and Forest. The panel will consider options to manage numbers of deer, chamois, tahr and pigs consistent with conservation of indigenous biodiversity and the recreational, food and trophy value of those species. The panel will prepare a discussion document identifying key issues and will seek submissions from the public. It will then hold hearings with key stakeholders

values that are unlikely to be protected satisfactorily by tenure review.” Such land will not be allowed to pass into private hands unless it is demonstrably in the public interest. The change in policy followed a longterm campaign by Forest & Bird for better outcomes from tenure review, due to concerns that the process was not delivering the gains it promised for conservation. Forest & Bird Advocacy Manager Kevin Hackwell says the changes will greatly and report back to the minister by April 2008. Forest & Bird Advocacy Manager Kevin Hackwell welcomed the establishment of the panel. “This will be an opportunity for the public to make it clear that they want these animals managed to ensure future generations can still see healthy forests, kiwi and other native wildlife throughout New Zealand. If these introduced animals are not adequately controlled, they do enormous damage.” Kevin Hackwell said recreational hunting had an important role in managing numbers, but it was not appropriate for New Zealand’s native ecosystems to be managed as game parks. Chris Carter said that while deer, tahr, chamois and pigs were a recreational hunting resource for many New Zealanders, they also had a significant impact on fragile ecosystems. He said that debate had raged for 50 years about how to preserve recreational hunting opportunities while also managing the impact of game animals on ecosystems and native plants and animals. It was hoped

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No. 147 AUGUST 07

improve protection of some of the high country’s most iconic landscapes. “We applaud the ministers’ move to tighten controls and better protect these lakeside areas, which are an important scenic and ecological part of the high country.” Last year Forest & Bird was dismayed by the freeholding of about 6000-hectares of land around the shores of Lake Tekapo in the tenure review of the Richmond pastoral lease, and held fears that other iconic South Island lakes could face a similar fate. “Forest & Bird hopes that the changes announced by the government will prevent the repeat of such disastrous decisions, which would leave some of our most stunning high country landscapes open to the threat of subdivision and intensive development.” Kevin Hackwell says he hopes the changes will not only protect lakeside land, but will also ensure the high country’s iconic rivers and tussock basins will also be protected. “While it is good news that lakeside areas will be better protected, it is also important that our high country tussocklands – the sort of stunning landscapes that New Zealanders most closely identify with our high country – are also protected.”

Rod Morris

Don Geddes

Conservation

▲ Wild deer are like possums with hooves. the panel could lay to rest some of the controversy and allow interested groups to reach some agreement on the management of these species.

Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand, PO Box 631, Wellington w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z Phone (04) 385 7374 • Fax (04) 385 7373 • Email: office@forestandbird.org.nz

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New Zealand fur seals and hake caught as bycatch in the hoki fishery.

DOC appeals Wairau hydro scheme decision The Department of Conservation (DOC) lodged an appeal with the Environment Court in July on resource consents granted to TrustPower by Marlborough District Council-appointed Commissioners to build a hydroelectric power scheme that will cause environmental damage to the Wairau River. DOC’s Nelson/Marlborough Community Relations Manager, Jo Gould, says the department appealed the decision because, although it is an interim decision with conditions still to be set, it appeared to be final in approving the minimum flow regime to be maintained on the river. “That minimum flow regime would jeopardise the ongoing survival of endangered black-fronted terns living on the river and also have adverse impacts on other conservation values of the river,” she says. The endemic black-fronted tern (tarapiroe) is unique to New Zealand and is listed as an endangered species on the World Conservation Union (IUCN) Red List of Species Threatened with Extinction. This puts the species in the same threat category as the giant panda in China. “If the interim decision is final on the minimum flow regime, then we think it most unlikely that any conditions would be able to compensate for what we consider to be an inadequate minimum flow. This minimum w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Forest & Bird is actively supporting a legislative bid by Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton to strengthen the Fisheries Act to make sure that commercial fisheries are managed more sustainably. At the moment the minister is often unable to implement measures that would support sustainable fisheries, particularly when there is uncertainty. For example, he was prevented from reducing the number of sea lions killed by trawl fisheries, reducing orange roughy quota to rebuild collapsing fish stocks, and implementing emergency measures to stop excessive seabird bycatch. The minister’s Fisheries Amendment Bill proposes to strengthen the existing Act to give clearer direction to decision makers to act cautiously when information about a fishery is uncertain or data is lacking. Although many MPs and stakeholder groups support the move, the Bill has been attacked by some MPs and some in the fishing industry, and may not succeed. Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton spoke out about his proposed reform to the Act at the Seafood Industry Conference in May: “Simply put, this is the precautionary

approach. If information is uncertain, we should lean on the side of protecting the fishery, not risking its destruction. Fish left in the sea, are fish in the bank. To keep on taking fish when you don’t have a good idea of how many are left is, in my view, like robbing the bank.” Forest & Bird was pleased to hear his comments and hopes to see the Bill strengthened and passed this year. Thanks to all those members that sent emails and letters to the Primary Production Select Committee and Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton after Forest & Bird’s recent email alert was sent to members in July.

flow would neither sustain the ecological functioning of the river as a braided river system nor sustain the habitat for blackfronted tern. The Wairau River supports 10% of the black-fronted tern breeding population.” If the flow regime decision is not final, then DOC says it will seek to have its concerns addressed through conditions on the resource consent. DOC says it has had advice from its own and independent experts that the diversion of significant quantities of water – up to 60% of the river’s flow – for the hydro scheme and the minimum flow regime that would be maintained on the river would have significant adverse impacts on black-fronted terns, reducing their food supply and putting them at increased risk of nest predation. DOC is also concerned that the minimum flow regime as it stands would adversely impact on populations of dwarf galaxias fish and long-finned eels, both of which are threatened species and in gradual decline, by reducing their habitat. It would also adversely affect the overall life-supporting capacity of the river by reducing the habitat of aquatic invertebrate communities, the main source of food for fish and birds. “While we acknowledge the need for renewable energy sources and a secure national energy supply, the Department of Conservation has a statutory responsibility to advocate for the conservation of natural resources, including native birds and aquatic life,” Jo Gould says. “Our objection is not to there being a

hydro-electric scheme on the Wairau River, but to the particular scheme proposed by TrustPower. The TrustPower scheme would fundamentally change the Wairau River environment and have, in our view, unacceptable adverse impacts on the important natural values of this braided river, in particular, black-fronted terns.” Forest & Bird Top of the South Field Officer Debs Martin says the best way to ensure that the river flow and habitats are protected would be to decline TrustPower’s application outright. “In fact, the conditions we require may mean that the hydro scheme is not feasible for TrustPower to proceed,” she says.

What you can do • Write to the Primary Production Select Committee and Minister of Fisheries Jim Anderton (Freepost at Parliament, Wellington) to express your support for the Fisheries Amendment Bill; • Talk to your local MPs and ask them to support the Bill; • For more information on the Bill see Forest & Bird’s website (www. forestandbird.org.nz)

What you can do • Write to or call TrustPower expressing your views. Freephone 0800 878 787 or email: trustpower@trustpower.co.nz

Rod Morris

Forest & Bird

Bid to make fisheries sustainable

▲

Black-fronted tern at the nest. FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Eugenie Sage

▲ 4-wheel drive tracks at Lake Heron

Lake Heron road decision under review In a welcome move, Department of Conservation (DOC) Director-General Al Morrison has cancelled the department’s decision to increase 4WD access and roading around Canterbury’s Lake Heron in the Hakatere/Ashbuton lakes. He has now asked DOC’s West Coast regional conservator Mike Slater to consider matters afresh and make a new decision. The decision was cancelled after a letter from Forest & Bird challenged the decision as resulting from mistakes of fact and law. These included basing the decision on the department’s “Strategic Directions”

On World Oceans Day in June Forest & Bird launched its proposal for a marine mammal sanctuary to protect the critically endangered Maui’s dolphin off the north-west coast of the North Island. Just 111 individual dolphins remain. Forest & Bird Conservation Advocate Kirstie Knowles says a marine mammal sanctuary is the only measure that can protect Maui’s dolphins from all known threats, and could be the last chance to save the dolphins from extinction. Forest & Bird proposes that a marine mammal sanctuary be set up from Maunganui Bluff near Dargaville in the north to Cape Egmont, Taranaki, in the south, including the inner harbours and estuaries. Kirstie Knowles says activities that threaten Maui’s dolphins, such as set netting, trawling, sand mining, pollution, and excessive speed of boats near dolphins, would be restricted or regulated within the proposed sanctuary.

42 FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Kawhia Primary School “Maui’s Dolphins” Young environmental campaigners – and basketballers – in Kawhia are giving their support to Forest & Bird’s efforts to protect Maui’s dolphins. Forest & Bird’s Waikato Branch is sponsoring Kawhia Primary School’s junior basketball team, known as the Maui’s Dolphins, and has provided the team with uniforms. Players will also distribute flyers about the dolphins at their games. The team’s coach, Davis Apiti, says the children want to raise awareness of the dolphins’ plight and the proposed marine mammal sanctuary. Mr Apiti – who is also father to three of the players – Aotea, 12, Kawharu, 10 and Sarah, 8 – says saving the Maui’s dolphin is important for the Waikato and for his children’s future, and the kids are right behind the campaign.

Peter Drury. Waikato Times

Maui’s campaign launched

business planning document rather than legislation, and inadequate consideration of the Canterbury Conservation Management Strategy, scientific advice about uncommon ephemeral tarn wetlands and turf communities containing threatened plants, and vehicle impacts. The Ashburton Forest & Bird Branch said the decision did not recognise the fire risk from off-road vehicles, after a fire near Lake Clearwater when motorbikes were ridden in extremely dry tussock grasslands. DOC’s February decision was also strongly criticised by the Canterbury/Aoraki

Conservation Board, which has consistently supported protecting the lake margins from the impacts of 4WD vehicles. The Board’s views deserved to be more seriously considered given its statutory role of advising the department. Ashburton Branch Secretary Val Clemens says the branch hopes that in reviewing the issue, the department will give greater weight to protecting the lakeshore, red tussock wetlands, the Swin River and the enjoyment that walkers, bird watchers and others get from Lake Heron’s peacefulness and beauty. She said the branch was delighted with the Green Party’s Budget initiative in May to allocate $2.2 million annually to DOC for wetland and freshwater conservation in three areas: the Hakatere/Ashburton lakes and upper Rangitata River, Waikato’s Whangamarino wetland, and the Waituna Lagoon/Awarua wetland complex in Southland. “In the Ashburton/Hakatere lakes the funding will help safeguard one of the best remaining high country wetland complexes and premium braided river habitat. Increasing offroad vehicle use would do the opposite,” Val Clemens says.

▲ Back from left: Aotea Apiti, Troy Stafford and Ben Farrow. Front from left: Sarah Apiti, Kawharu Apiti and Turonga Mahara.

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MPs Heather Roy (ACT), Barbara Stewart (NZ First), Sue Bradford (Greens), Marion Hobbs (Labour), Katherine Rich (National), and Judy Turner (United Future) support Forest & Bird’s Mothers’ Day promotion.

southern squid fishery to close to zero next year. It is hoped that the Department of Conservation will complete its long overdue population management plan for sea lions in time for the minister to consider when he sets the next kill quota later this year.

▲

Tui De Roy

An estimated 56 New Zealand sea lions were killed by the southern squid trawl fishery this season. Forest & Bird Conservation Advocate Kirstie Knowles says the number of sea lions killed was lower than the 93 limit on the number the fishery was permitted to kill this year, but it was still far too high. “Forest & Bird is relieved the number of sea lions killed is down on last year, when 110 were killed, but the deaths of 56 sea lions is still unsustainable and has serious implications for the declining population of this endangered endemic marine mammal,” Kirstie Knowles says. Forest & Bird’s Mothers’ Day promotion to raise awareness of the deaths of nursing sea lions and their pups won support from MPs across Parliament in May. MP “Mums” from Labour, National, Greens, United Future, New Zealand First and ACT accepted a Mothers’ Day card from Forest & Bird on Parliament’s front steps to help raise awareness of the sea lions’ plight. The response from the public has also been very encouraging, with thousands of the cards signed and sent to Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton asking that he reduce the sea lion kill quota for the

Helen Bain

Sea lion death toll continues

Campbell albatross will be safer as a result of new rules for longline vessels.

Good news for albatrosses Albatrosses will benefit from new restrictions on the use of surface longline fishing announced by Minister of Fisheries Jim Anderton in January. This followed several incidents in late 2006 in which commercial vessels longlining for tuna and swordfish outside the Kermadec Islands Marine Reserve caught large numbers of seabirds, especially threatened Antipodean wandering albatrosses. Forest & Bird Conservation Advocate Kirstie Knowles welcomed the move which means all surface longlining within the New Zealand Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) will be confined to night setting and that all vessels must use approved bird scaring devices or tori lines. “Voluntary measures and management of w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

seabird bycatch through Codes of Practice have proved to be ineffective in many New Zealand fisheries,” she says. “The Minister has been advised that many of the vessels involved in surface longlining have a history of non-compliance with rules and regulations. We hope that the Ministry will now put observers aboard all the vessels to verify compliance.” While the measures announced are seen as a good first step, it is hoped that satisfactory long-term solutions will be found not just for seabird bycatch, but also for the sharks and marine turtles which are also a significant bycatch in surface longline fisheries. The Antipodean wandering albatross is endemic to New Zealand and is part of the

wandering albatross group, all of which are threatened species. Thanks to all those members that made submissions on this issue and supported our Save the Albatross appeal.

@ FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

Dave Hansford

branchingout

Prime Minister Helen Clark speaking at the AGM.

L - R: Top – Liz Slooten, Suzi Phillips, Peter Maddison, Philip Hart and Rob Brown. Below – Craig Potton, Barry Wards, Donald Kerr, Mark Fort, Anne Fenn and Gerry McSweeney. Janet Ledingham is not pictured.

84th Annual General Meeting

OREST & Bird’s 84th Annual General Meeting (AGM) was held in June at the Silverstream Retreat in Upper Hutt. Attended by over 100 delegates from almost all the Society’s 54 branches, the AGM was followed by the traditional Council Meeting which was addressed this year by Prime Minister Helen Clark and Leader of the Opposition John Key. In her speech the Prime Minister described the changes the Government announced on the eve of the AGM to the high country tenure review process, telling the meeting that greater priority would now be given to protecting biodiversity in a network of high country conservation parks and iconic high county lakes. “The time has come to draw a line,” she said of the government’s move to reform the tenure review process, which prompted loud applause from the audience. After noting increases in funding for the Department of Conservation (DOC) over the past seven years, she said she also shared the serious concerns Forest & Bird had raised about the survival of Maui’s dolphins, and confirmed that the government still aims to have 10% of coastal waters safeguarded in marine reserves or other protection measures by 2010. In his speech, Leader of the Opposition John Key talked

about the need to tackle climate change and to give more support to community conservation projects. The three main areas which National wants to focus on are the economy, education and the environment, he said. Describing climate change as “the major environmental challenge of our time” he said National was committed to a 50% reduction in carbonequivalent net emissions by 2050, compared to 1990 levels. In answer to questions, National’s environment and conservation spokesman Dr Nick Smith gave an assurance that it is not National’s intention to undermine the role or primacy of conservation in the National Parks or Conservation Acts. In his speech Forest & Bird National President Peter Maddison highlighted the many achievements of the Society throughout the year across the spectrum of its marine, high country, dawn chorus and freshwater campaigns, and noted that the Society and New Zealand still faced many conservation challenges. He urged political leaders to ensure that conservation was a leading issue at the next election – and encouraged members to help ensure that conservation issues were at the forefront of the political agenda. Peter Maddison was reelected as president (the

4 4 F4 O 4 RFEOSRT E &S T B &I R BD I R• DN •O VAEUMGBUESRT 22000067

presidency was not contested); Barry Wards was elected deputy, and Liz Slooten, Craig Potton, Anne Fenn, Donald Kerr, Mark Fort, Gerry McSweeney, Janet Ledingham, Philip Hart, Suzi Phillips and Rob Brown were elected as Executive members. During the course of the weekend presentations were made by Ralph Chapman of Victoria University and Joseph Arand of DOC on climate change; Forest & Bird past president Gerry McSweeney on 20 years of DOC; Graeme Elliot of DOC’s Operation Ark on pest control; BirdLife Pacific Head Don Stewart on BirdLife’s conservation work in the region; and Clare Curran of Inzight Communications on new market research. Forest & Bird staff also gave updates on current campaign work and ran workshops for delegates. Old Blue awards for outstanding contributions to conservation were presented to Karen and Maurice Colgan, Arthur Cowan, Geoff Harrow, Peter Howden, Carole Long and Bill Moore. The award presentations were followed by the annual Sanderson Memorial Address which was given by Dr Wren Green. Entitled “1080 or not 1080?”, it focused on the history of 1080 and pest control in New Zealand leading up to this year’s reassessment of 1080 by the Environmental Risk Management Authority and the

public debate over the issue. There were loud cheers accompanied by party streamers during the weekend, welcoming the government’s announcement that it will improve protection of some of the South Island high country’s most iconic landscapes. Lands and Survey Minister David Parker and Conservation Minister Chris Carter made the announcement shortly before the AGM, describing the decision to tighten up the tenure review process as a way to ensure some of the most spectacular alpine lakesides in New Zealand such as Tekapo, Wanaka and Wakatipu would be safe from inappropriate subdivision or development. Copies of the keynote speeches and the Sanderson Memorial Address are available from the Forest & Bird website. Branches can also order a CD of powerpoint presentations from the AGM - including copies of Ralph Chapman and Joseph Arand’s presentations on climate change; Graeme Elliott’s presentation on Operation Ark; James Griffiths’ presentation on lowland biodiversity protection; Kirstie Knowles’ presentation on Hector’s dolphins and marine reserves and the Sanderson Memorial Address (text also available on the website). CDs can be ordered from Sam Partridge at s.partridge@forestandbird. org.nz Helen Bain

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branchingout

Dave Hansford

Karen and Maurice Colgan are recognised for their outstanding contribution to conservation for their volunteer work at Ark in the Park in the Waitakere Ranges. Together they have set up nearly 1800 bait stations over the 1100-hectare site to establish the Ark’s extensive predator control system that has allowed the safe reintroduction of endangered native birds to the Waitakeres. Karen has also been Volunteer Coordinator since the project began, organising dozens of volunteers every week to maintain predator control. Maurice’s computer graphics skills have provided invaluable maps, graphs and data that have guided volunteer efforts and monitored progress of the project.

Geoff Harrow (above left) is recognised for his outstanding contribution to conservation in playing a critical role in the protection of the endemic Hutton’s shearwater. The whereabouts of the breeding grounds of the Hutton’s shearwater, high in the Seaward Kaikoura Range, was

completely unknown to science till the 1960s. After hearing from hunters about burrows sighted in the area, Geoff set out on a difficult search of this remote and inaccessible location to find out if this was the breeding site of the shearwaters. His confirmation that this was the location of the world’s only breeding colonies of Hutton’s shearwaters, and his subsequent work over four decades studying and protecting the birds, has been a valuable contribution to conservation. Geoff joined Forest & Bird in 1936 at age 10 and even now, 70 years later, he remains actively involved in the Shearwater Recovery Programme, in particular efforts to establish a new Hutton’s shearwater colony on the Kaikoura Peninsula, and in educating community and school groups.

Bill Moore (above) is recognised for his major contribution to conservation on the Kapiti Coast. Bill and his wife Win joined the Lower Hutt Branch in the 1960s, and joined the Kapiti Branch in 1973 when they moved to Waikanae. Bill was elected to the branch committee that year, and has served on the committee ever since, including long periods as secretary and chairman. He led branch walks and trips and has been active in branch projects and activities for many years. Many of the Kapiti Branch’s current projects – Kaitawa Reserve, Greendale Reserve and Waikanae River – all show Bill’s imprint.

w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Dave Hansford

“Old Blue” Awards

L - R: “Old Blue” recipients Arthur and Pat Cowan, Peter Howden and Carole Long.

Bill was also instrumental in the establishment of the Kapiti Island Marine Reserve, and restoration of the coastal forest remnant at Queen Elizabeth Park, near Paekakariki, which Forest & Bird and Kapiti Environmental Action saved from gradual destruction. Carole Long (above) is recognised for her efforts over more than 30 years in campaigning for conservation. Carole is Chairwoman of the Te Puke Forest & Bird Branch, and till this year served on Forest & Bird’s National Executive. She has been actively involved in the formation of the Kaimai Mamaku Conservation Park, Whirinaki Conservation Park, establishment of the Te Puke section of Forest & Bird and its subsequent development into a branch, protection of Maketu Estuary, and many other conservation campaigns and projects in the Bay of Plenty, and is a trustee of the Otanewainuku Kiwi Trust. Arthur Cowan (above) is a long-time member of Forest & Bird Waikato Branch, and has also served on the Advisory Committee for the Regional Environment, and the Otorohanga Zoological Committee. The results of his conservation efforts can be seen in the forested area and walking tracks in the centre of Otorohanga, and many other reserves and covenanted areas. Arthur is also a former director of the QEII National Trust and was a founding trustee of

the Native Forests Restoration Trust. Arthur has been a stalwart for decades at Forest & Bird plantings and field trips, including trips to Rangitoto Station, one of the most significant properties protected through his efforts. Every winter, with a band of helpers, he has planted more than 4000 native plants, creating many hectares of restored native vegetation. Peter Howden (above) joined Forest & Bird’s Ashburton Branch in 1964 and has since served as a committee member and chairman of the Ashburton Branch. His conservation work with birds has included protection of one of New Zealand’s most endangered birds, the taiko, on the Chatham Islands, studying white-flippered penguins on North Canterbury’s Motunau Island and Cook’s petrels, sooty shearwaters and mottled petrels on Codfish Island. He has also been involved with studies of Westland black petrel, Australasian crested grebe, Canterbury mudfish, South Island pied oystercatcher and banded dotterel. Peter has been a member of the Ashburton River Management Plan working group since its inception, is Forest & Bird’s representative on the Lake Coleridge Trust and the Ashburton and Rangitata Instream Users Group. Helen Bain

FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

branchingout

Use your will power to make a difference

HERE are many good reasons for making a will. A will records who you wish to benefit from your estate and ensures your final wishes are carried out. If you do not make a will the law can dictate who will receive your assets after you have gone. Your estate is then divided between relatives according to a statutory formula. This can result in lengthy and expensive legal proceedings for beneficiaries. If you have no close relatives and you do not have a will your assets could pass to the Crown. One of the first steps to take when considering drawing up your will is to contact you family lawyer, Public Trust or Guardian Trust office. They will be able to advise you on the process of writing your will. The off-the-shelf do-it-yourself will kits can be very basic and not cover all of the considerations of writing a detailed will. This is why it is important to seek legal advice to minimise the chances of your last

wishes being contested. The New Zealand Law Society has a series of useful brochures regarding making wills and administering estates, and will send you free copies on request. You can also access these brochures by visiting the website www.lawyers.org.nz then clicking on ‘law awareness pamphlets’. The Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Incorporated has been protecting and maintaining New Zealand’s unique flora and fauna for over 80 years. Our work towards conservation means that we are ensuring New Zealand’s treasures can be enjoyed for future generations. By leaving a gift in your will to our organisation you can ensure that we will still be here for another 80 years, an investment in the future to continue our mission. We rely heavily on bequests, donations and membership to carry out our vital work.

There are several ways you can make a bequest (or gift in your will) to Forest & Bird. The provision you choose will depend on your circumstances, whether it be the residue of your estate, a percentage of your estate or a fixed sum, through to property and assets or specific items. A gift in your will to Forest & Bird will help ensure our vital conservation work continues to make a difference. Bequests can be made to “Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Incorporated”. If you would like to discuss leaving a gift in your will to Forest & Bird or would like to receive a copy of our bequest brochure please contact Kerin Welford on our freephone number 0800 200 064 or email k.welford@ forestandbird.org.nz Kerin will be happy to talk to you about how a gift in your will can make a real difference and please ask about our “free Will service”.

NATURE’S TREASURES NEED YOUR HELP New Zealand’s breathtaking natural landscapes and beautiful native animal and plant life are precious treasures to us all. They are part of our identity as New Zealanders. But with so many of our natural treasures threatened with extinction, it is vital that we continue to protect them for future generations to experience and enjoy. The Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Incorporated is the leading independent voice for conservation. We have been working to preserve and protect native forests, wetlands, tussocklands and marine habitats since 1923. Over that time, species such as kiwi and kakapo have been saved from extinction giving other species hope for the future. But our vital conservation work couldn’t continue without the generous gifts we receive from supporters. By leaving a gift in your Will to 4 6 F4 O 6 RFEOSRT E &S T B &I R BD I R• DN •O VAEUMGBUESRT 22000067

Forest & Bird you will help ensure our vital conservation continues to make a difference. Forest & Bird is not funded by the government. We rely on the generosity of kiwis through donations, subscriptions and bequests. Bequests can be made to the “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 to Forest & Bird please contact Kerin Welford on Freephone 0800 200 064. Kerin Welford, Senior Fundraiser Royal Forest and Bird Protection Society of New Zealand Incorporated, PO Box 631, Wellington 6140. www.forestandbird.org.nz Email: k.welford@forestandbird.org.nz ww ww w. w f o. fr oe rs et as tnadnbdi b r di r. d o .r og r. g n .zn z

– this summer there will be a plague

branchingout

A rat raids a fantail’s nest

ROD MORRIS

New Zealand Permit No. 135751

TUI IN POHUTUKAWA

RESTORE THE DAWN CHORUS If undelivered return to P O Box 631, Wellington, New Zealand

Thank you for your support

VERY year members and supporters donate to Forest & Bird’s appeals, raising valuable funds which allow the Society to undertake its vital long-term conservation work. In recent years the total amount donated annually has increased, for which Forest & Bird is extremely grateful. With the additional resources the Society has been able to expand its conservation work and staff. Most recently, donations have been directed towards supporting the Society’s campaign to save Hector’s and Maui’s dolphins. Forest & Bird has been busy in recent months campaigning for a new Maui’s Dolphin Marine Mammal Sanctuary off the north-east coast of the North Island and a set net ban around the rest of the coast where Hector’s dolphins are also threatened

by fishing. This has involved a campaign launch event in Auckland and the production and distribution of various campaign promotion materials including two posters, two brochures, a postcard, new web pages, media releases and feature articles. Each year Forest & Bird sends members and supporters its Restore the Dawn Chorus appeal. Most recently, donations have been directed towards the Society’s campaign supporting pest control and the use of 1080. The Society helped to organise submissions being made in all the main centres and mobilised hundreds of submissions supporting 1080 approval. Forest & Bird acted as a national voice for the campaign with its views published in national newpaper editorial pages and a wide variety of other media

coverage. We are hopeful that the campaign has been successful and that 1080 will be approved for use shortly. Part of the national advocacy work has been lobbying government to make more resources available for pest control. Equally important has been the support the Society’s staff, especialy its field officers, give to the various branch habitat and species restoration projects from Ark in the Park in the north to the Te Rere Reserve in the south. Last year the Society appealed for donations to support the Save Our Sealions campaign after Fisheries Minister Jim Anderton increased the annual New Zealand sea lion kill quota from 97 to 150. Forest & Bird directed those donations towards helping to organise a national “Save Our Sealions” petition urging the Government to reduce the annual kill quota close to zero. Thanks to the support of branches and members we gathered over 20,000 signatures of support which were presented at Parliament along with a symbolic sea lion ice sculpture. To support the campaign a comprehensive 30 page technical report on New Zealand sea lions was produced and submitted to goverment in November 2006, making

Waitakere Branch thanks Ken Catt

OREST & Bird gratefully acknowledges the support of The Southern Trust, Trust House and the Mana Community Grants Foundation.

Ken Catt

Brian Weston on the new John Deere tractor mower bought with funding from Mana Community Grants Foundation for Pauatahanui Reserve.

Suzi Phillips

ETIRING Forest & Bird Waitakere Branch Secretary Ken Catt was presented with a beautiful hand painted pottery bowl in appreciation of his services to the Branch, at their Annueal General Meeting in May. Ken was retiring from 17 years service as Branch Secretary. New Waitakere Branch Chairman, John Staniland, thanked Ken for his hard work and years of dedication to conservation at a national, regional and local level for which he has in the past been awarded an Old Blue award, a life membership of the Society and a Queen’s Service Medal. The bowl, crafted by artist Lynda Harris, was a fitting tribute as it depicts the plight of the Maui’s dolphin, a campaign close to Ken’s heart.

the case for a reduction in the annual kill quota. In 2005 our Save the Albatross appeal sucessfully raised funds which were directed towards supporting the Society’s work to protect these most majestic of birds. Almost immediately Forest & Bird’s campaign met with success, first with the closure of the southern squid fishery for its failire to adequately proect seabirds, and then with the adoption of new measures to strengthen the National Plan of Action for Reducing Seabird Bycatch. This vital work has continued through our close involvement with BirdLife International’s Save the Albatross campaign and has included the support of the Volvo Ocean Race teams, including race winner and ABN AMRO 2 skipper, Mike Sanderson. Sometimes our advocacy work has a low profile, such as the attendance of regualr DOC and MFish stakeholder meetings, and Southern Seabird Solutions which engages with the fishing industry to promote win-win solutions. The next step will be to complete our Marine Important Bird Areas Inventory of New Zealand, documenting and mapping the most important sites for seabirds around New Zealand’s coasts and seas.

Tony Ellis Forest & Bird past president and Distinguished Life Member Tony Ellis died in July. He was president of the Society from 1976 till 1984. An obituary will appear in the next issue.

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FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

branchingout

Untitled by John Walsh. oil on board, 2007 Herons and knot by Grant Tilly. mixed media on board, 2007

Art for Conservation

REPARATIONS for Forest & Bird’s Art for Conservation auction to raise funds for the Hector’s and Maui’s dolphin campaign and conservation of the South Island high country are well underway with 53 works pledged to date. The pledged works are by leading New Zealand artists, including Dick Frizzell,

Michael Smither, Don Binney, Pauline Morse, Brent Wong, Chris Heaphy, John Walsh, Gerda Leenards, John Reynolds and Marilyn Webb to name but a few. The public will be able to view the works at a public showcase in the Fletcher Challenge Foyer of the Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington, 26-27 September. This is

shortly before the auction itself which is being hosted by the Governor-General of New Zealand, His Excellency the Honourable Anand Satyanand PCNZM, at Government House in Wellington on 4 October. Members of the public will be able to make bids at the public showcase viewing, via the internet and via telephone. See the Forest & Bird website

homepage for details (www. forestandbird.org.nz). Attendance of the auction will be by invitation. If you would like to donate an original work for sale in the auction or go on our auction mailing list please contact Senior Fundraiser Kerin Welford at Central Office in Wellington on 04 385 7374 or email: k.welford@forestandbird.org.nz

New staff appointments MARION YODER is the Society’s new environmental lawyer, based at the Christchurch office. She has previously worked at Environment Canterbury as a natural resources planner and as an environment lawyer in the United States on a variety of water and wildlife issues. She can be contacted at the Christchurch office or via email: m.yoder@forestandbird.org.nz

PHILPROOF PEST CONTROL PRODUCTS WIPEOUT: Possums, Rodents, Mustelids, Rabbits Standard & Mini Philproof Bait Stations & Timms Traps Rodent Bait Stations and Block Baits. Rodent Snap Traps Fenn Traps (MK4 & 6), Trap Covers – Double or Single Also available: Monitoring Tunnels & Bird Nesting Chambers Phone/Fax 07 859 2943 Mobile 021 270 5896 PO Box 4385, Hamilton 2032 Website: www.philproof.co.nz Email: philproof.feeders@clear.net.nz

JACKY GUERTS is the Society’s TROY MAKAN is the Society’s new Marine Conservation Field new Central North Island Field Officer, based at the Auckland Officer, based in Rotorua. He office. She was previously a previously worked as a consultmarine biologist and dolphin ant ecologist for forestry tour guide andFor wasthe contracted Ernslawand One developcontrol company of Possums Rats to work on marine issues for ing conservation management the Department of plans. He was also involved in Conservation. She can be the transfer of hihi from Tiri Tiri contacted at the Auckland office Matangi Island to the Ark in the or via email: Park. Hhe can be contacted at j.guerts@forestandbird.org.nz the Rotorua office or via email: t.makan@forestandbird.org.nz

PINDONE PELLETS

PINDONE PELLE TS LS PM 35

FOUR new staff have joined Forest & Bird in recent months. CHRIS TODD is the Society’s new South Island Field Coordinator, based at the Christchurch office. He was previously Forest & Bird’s Field Officer working on freshwater issues in Christchurch and has worked for the Department of Conservation. He can be contacted at the Christchurch office or via email at: c.todd@forestandbird.org.nz

For the control of Possums and Rats 2kg, 10kg and 25kg bags avaliable 2kg, 10kg and 25kg “Ask bags available at your local Farm Store” “Ask at your local Farm Store”

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BIORESEARCHES OKARITO COTTAGE CONSULTING BIOLOGISTS AND ARCHAEOLOGISTS ESTABLISHED 1972

Environmental Impact Studies Surveys of Marine, Freshwater & Terrestrial Habitats Pollution Investigations Resource Consent procedures Archaeological; Historic Places Appraisal bioresearches@bioresearches.co.nz www.bioresearches.co.nz P.O Box 2828 Auckland PH: AUCKLAND 379 9417 Fax (09) 307 6409

Well appointed cottage. Sleeps 3 but room for more in the attic. Close to West Coast beach, bush walks and lagoon. Southern Alps form a backdrop and Franz Josef approx. 30 kilometres on tarsealed road. Cost $70 PER FAMILY Extra Adults $10 per night Further enquiries contact Elspeth Scott, 19 Ngamotu Rd, Taupo 07-378-9390 email: ElspethScott@xtra.co.nz

To advertise in Forest & Bird magazine please contact: Vanessa Clegg vanclegg@xtra.co.nz 0275 420 337 or Karen Condon mack.cons@xtra.co.nz 0275 420 338 ADFX Ltd PO Box 11-836, Ellerslie 1051 or 10 Findlay Street, Ellerslie 1051

Pohatu Penguins & Marine Reserve Banks Peninsula Scenic nature tours with local volunteers conserving Banks Peninsula’s biodiversity. • Coastal Retreat • Sea Kayaking Bookings through Akaroa Information Centre ph 03 304 8600 www.pohatu.co.nz

RON GREENWOOD ENVIRONMENTAL TRUST

The trust provides financial support for projects advancing the conservation and protection of New Zealand's natural resources, particularly flora and fauna, marine life, geology, atmosphere & waters. More information is available from the Trust, at: PO Box 10-359, Wellington

For Stewart Island Accommodation in the Bush Rakiura Retreat Motels overlooking Braggs Bay/ Halfmoon Bay • Access to beach • Complimentary cars/bikes • Warm & comfortable • Transfers & Professional guides available • Sleeps up to 24 Individuals & Groups welcome. www.rakiuraretreat.co.nz info@rakiuraretreat.co.nz • 03 2191096

White Heron Sanctuary Tours Come with us, RAINFOREST, NATURE and JETBOATING TOURS, all year round. Viewing of nesting colony from October to March. Ph. 0800 52 34 56

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NZ, South Pacific & other inspired destinations SMALL GROUP TOURS

Banks Peninsula Track Spectacular coastal walking track beyond Akaroa. Sea and bush birds, seals, and Hector’s dolphins. Opportunity in Spring for guided viewing of white-flippered penguin colony at Pohatu Flea Bay. Booking Office now open. Ph/Fax 03 304 7612 Cosy huts with a Email:bankstrack@xtra.co.nz • www.bankstrack.co.nz dash of luxury.

South America

Waikava Harbour View 4 bedroom luxury lodge Peaceful native setting Waipohatu bush walk Curio Bay fossil forest Hector’s dolphins, yellow-eyed penguins, seals 14 Larne Street, Waikawa, Southland

Small Groups + Independent travellers CALL NOW FOR FREE 2008 BROCHURE Latin Link Adventure The South American Specialists 0800 528 465 / marg@latinlink.co.nz

Tel: 03 246 8866 Email: waikawa@southcatlins.co.nz

Patagonia 23 Days

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Departs Buenos Aires 14 Feb ‘08

Kayak, snorkel, hike, bike and dive your way around the enchanted islands, while learning about wildlife and conservation. Departs every month from Quito

Call for free dossier 0800 874 748 or email: sil@southernexposuretours.co.nz www.southernexposuretours.co.nz

Call for free dossier 0800 874 748 or email: nick@southernexposuretours.co.nz www.southernexposuretours.co.nz

Bush & Beyond Guided Walks

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Contact Kiwi Wildlife Tours NZ PO Box 686, Warkworth Ph 09 422 6868 info@kiwi-wildlife.co.nz www.kiwi-wildlife.co.nz

The Original From Comfortable LodgeKahurangi stay to Off track Guides wilderness backpacking. From Comfortable Including: Lodge stay to Heaphy and Cobb Valley Off track wilderness and much more! backpacking Conservation Including:values Heaphy and

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Website: www.southcatlins.co.nz

Fiordland Ecology Holidays 65ft Motor Yacht Breaksea Girl 3 to 7 day trips in Fiordland. Dolphins, seals and penguins, forest ecology, natural history combined with great food and company. Small groups so bookings essential. Forest & Bird members 5% discount. Suitable for all ages.

Summer schedule out now PH/FAX: 03 249 6600 FREEPHONE 0800 249 660 PO Box 40, MANAPOURI EMAIL info@fiordland.gen.nz www.fiordland.gen.nz

WINNER 1999

FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007

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(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:

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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.

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) 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 time-to-time.

FOREST BIRD

FOREST BIRD Forest & Bird Membership

Join Forest & Bird and you will receive Forest & Bird magazine, including Conservation News, and our email newletter, e-News, four times a year. You will have free entry to more than 30 Forest & Bird reserves around the country and discounted entry to the Society’s seven lodges at Ruapehu, Piha and other scenic locations. You can also take part in conservation projects and enjoy talks and field trips through our 55 branches around the country.

Sustain Programme Join Forest & Bird’s new monthly giving programme and you will receive all of the membership benefits above, our regular Sustain email update, and invitations to attend special events.

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Join online: www.forestandbird.org.nz • Freephone 0800 200 064

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KCC Overseas NZ$28

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FOREST & BIRD • FEBRUARY 2007

Forest & Bird is New Zealand's leading independent conservation organisation This gift membership is from: First name:______________________________________ Last name_______________________________________ Address: _________________________________________________________________________________________ Phone:_________________________________ Email: ____________________________________________________ Please send the first gift pack to me for personal presentation.

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branchdirectory

Upper North Island Central Auckland: Chair, Anne Fenn; Secretary, Isabel Still, PO Box 1118, Shortland St, Auckland. Tel: (09) 528-3986. Far North: Chair, Gary Bramley; Secretary. Michael Winch, PO Box 270, Kaeo, Northland. Tel: (09) 405-1746. Franklin: Chair & Secretary, Keith Gardner, 5 Stembridge Ave, Pukekohe. Tel: (09) 238-9928. Great Barrier Island: Secretary, Jenny Lloyd, 165 Shoal Bay Rd, RD1, Gt Barrier Is. Tel: (09) 429-0404. Hauraki Islands: Chair, Brian Griffiths; Secretary; Simon Griffiths, PO Box 314, Ostend, Waiheke Island. Tel: (09) 372-9583. Hibiscus Coast: Chair, Pauline Smith; Secretary: vacant, PO Box 310, Orewa. Tel: (09) 427-5517. Kaipara: Chair, Suzi Phillips; Secretary, Suzi Phillips, Private Bag 1, Helensville 1250. Tel: 021 271 2527. Mid North: Chair, Warwick Massey; Secretary, Raewyn Morrison, PO Box 552, Warkworth 1241. Tel: (09) 422 9123. Northern: Chair, vacant; Secretary, Beverly Woods, PO Box 1375, Whangarei. Tel: (09) 436-0932. North Shore: Chair, Neil Sutherland; Secretary, Jocelyn Sanders, PO Box 33 873, Takapuna, North Shore City. Tel: (09) 479-2107. South Auckland: Chair, Dene Andre; Secretary, Vacant, PO Box 23 602, Papatoetoe. Tel: (09) 267 4366. Thames/Hauraki: Chair, Marcia Sowman; Secretary, Hazel Genner, PO Box 312, Thames 3540. Tel: (07) 868 9057. Mercury Bay Section: Chair, Bruce Mackereth; Secretary, Wendy Hare, PO Box 205, Whitianga 2856. Tel: (07) 866 2501. Upper Coromandel: Chair, Don Hughes; Secretary, Jeanette McIntosh, PO Box 108 Coromandel. Tel: (07) 866-7248. Waitakere: Chair, Robyn Fendall; Secretary, Janie Vaughan, P O Box 60655 Titirangi 0642. Tel: (09) 817 9262

Gisborne: Chair, Dick McMurray; Secretary, Grant Vincent, 1 Dominey Street, Gisborne, Tel: (06) 868-8236. Rotorua: Chair, Chris Ecroyd; Secretary, Nicola Dooley, PO Box 1489, Rotorua. Tel: (07) 345 8687. South Waikato: Chair, Anne Groos; Secretary, Jack Groos, 37 Waianiwa Place, Tokoroa. Tel: (07) 886-7456. Taupo: Chair, Anne Gallagher; Secretary, Bett Davies, PO Box 1105 Taupo, Tel: (07) 378 7064. Tauranga: Chair, Vacant; Secretary, Cynthia Carter, PO Box 487, Tauranga. Tel:(07) 552 0220 . Te Puke: Chair, Neale Blaymires; Secretary, Colin Horn, PO Box 237, Te Puke. Tel : (07) 573 7345 Waihi: Chair, Ian Bradshaw; Secretary, Krishna Buckman, 17 Reservoir Road, Waihi. Tel: (07) 863-8455. Waikato: Chair, Dr Philip Hart; Secretary, Jim MacDiarmid, PO Box 11-092, Hillcrest, Hamilton, Tel: (07) 838-6644 extn 8344. Wairoa: Chair, Stanley Richardson; Secretary, Glenys Single, 72 Kopu Rd,Wairoa 4192. Tel: (06) 838-8232.

Rangitikei: Chair, Tony Simpson; Secretary, Betty Graham, 41-Tutaenui Rd, Marton. Tel: (06) 327-7008. South Taranaki: Chair, Rex Hartley; Secretary, Lynda Sutherland, 39 High St, Eltham 4657. Tel: (06) 764-7479. Upper Hutt: Chair, Dr Barry Wards; Secretary, Vacant; PO Box 40-875, Upper Hutt. Tel: (04) 970 4266. Wairarapa: Chair, Geoff Doring; Secretary, Vacant,10 Waiohine Gorge Rd, RD 1. Tel: 021 619 599. Wanganui: Chair, Stephen Sammons; Secretary, Ray Hutchison, PO Box 4229, Wanganui. Tel: (06) 345-2651. Wellington: Chair, Merrin Pearse; Secretary, Louise Taylor, PO Box 4183, Wellington. Tel: (04) 971-1770.

South Island Ashburton: Chair, Edith Smith; Secretary, Val Clemens, PO Box 460, Ashburton, Tel: (03) 308-5620. Dunedin: Chair, Jane Marshall; Secretary, Mark Hanger, PO Box 5793, Dunedin. Tel: (03) 489-8444. Golden Bay: Chair, Jenny Treloar; Secretary, Jo-Anne Lower North Island Vaughan, Puponga Rd, Ferntown, RD1, Collingwood Central Hawke’s Bay: Chair, Phil Enticott; Secretary, 7171. Tel: (03) 524-8072. Max Chatfield, PO Box 189, Waipukurau. Kaikoura: Chair, Sue Jarvie; Secretary, Barry Dunnett, Tel: (06) 858-9298. Pooles Rd RD1, Kaikoura. Tel: (03) 319-5086. Hastings/Havelock North: Marlborough: Chair, Andrew John; Secretary, Michael Chair, Ian Noble; Secretary, Doreen Hall, Flat 1, 805 Harvey, PO Box 896, Blenheim. Tel: (03) 577-6086. Kennedy Rd, Hastings. Tel: (06) 876-5978. Nelson/Tasman: Chair, Dr Peter Ballance; Secretary, Horowhenua: Chair, Robert Hirschberg; Secretary, Tony Bryant, 49 Motueka Quay, Motueka, 7120. Joan Leckie, Makahika Rd, RD 1, Levin 5500. Tel: (07) 528 5212. Tel: (06) 368-1277. North Canterbury: Chair: Lois Griffiths; Secretary, Kapiti Mana: Chair, David Gregorie; David Ellison-Smith, PO Box 2389, Christchurch Mail Secretary, John McLachlan, 78 Langdale Ave, Centre, Christchurch 8140. Tel: (03) 981 7037. Paraparaumu. Tel: (04) 904-0027. South Canterbury: Chair, Marijke Bakker-Gelsin; Lower Hutt: Chair, Stan Butcher; Secretary, Bill Watters, Secretary, Margaret McPherson, 29 Mountain View PO Box 31194, Lower Hutt. Tel: (04) 565-0638. Road, Timaru. Tel: (03) 686 1494. Manawatu: Chair, Brent Barrett, PO Box 961, Southland: Chair, Craig Carson; Secretary: vacant, Palmerston Nth 5301. Tel: (06) 357-6962; Secretary, PO Box 1155, Invercargill. Tel: (03) 213-0732. Joanna McVeagh, PO Box 961, Palmerston North 5301. South Otago: Chair, Carol Botting; Secretary, Verna Tel: (06) 356 6054. Gardner, Romahapa Rd, Balclutha. Tel: (03) 418-1819. Napier: Chair, Isabel Morgan; Secretary, Margaret Upper Clutha: Chair, Mark Ayre; Secretary, Angela Gwynn, 23 Clyde Rd, Napier. Tel: (06) 835 2122. Brown, PO Box 38, Lake Hawea, Central Otago 9192. North Taranaki: Chair, Ian Barry; Secretary, Murray Tel: (03) 433 7020. Central North Island Duke, PO Box 1029, New Plymouth 4340. Waitaki: Chair, Ross Babington; Secretary, Annette Eastern Bay of Plenty: Chair, Rosemary Tully; Officer, 21 Arrow Crescent, Oamaru. Tel: (03) 434-6107. Secretary, Sue Greenwood, c/o Ezebiz Tax, PO Box 582, Tel: (06) 751 2759. West Coast: Secretary/Treasurer, Carolyn Cox, 168 Whakatane, 3158. Tel: (07) 308 5576. Romilly St, Westport 7601. Tel: (03) 789-5334.

lodgeaccommodation Arethusa Cottage An ideal place from which to explore the Far North. Near Pukenui in wet-land 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, Fax: (09) 407-1401. 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. Double bedroom and 3 singles, plus large lounge with wood burner, dining area and kitchen. The self-contained unit has 4 single beds. Bring food, linen and fuel for fire and BBQ. Booking officer: Patricia Thompson, 78 Neil Avenue, Te Atatu Peninsula, Waitakere City 0610. Tel: (09) 834-7745 after 9am. Off peak rates apply. 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. w w w. f o r e s t a n d b i r d . o r g . n z

Ruapehu Lodge, Tongariro National Park Situated 600 m from Whakapapa Village, at the foot of Mount Ruapehu, this lodge is available for members and their friends. It may also be hired out to other compatible groups by special arrangement. It is an ideal base for tramping, skiing, botanising or visiting the hotpools at Tokaanu. The lodge holds 32 people in four bunkrooms and provides all facilities except food and bedding. Bookings and inquiries to Forest and Bird, PO Box 631, Wellington. Tel: (04) 385-7374, Fax: (04) 385-7373. Email: office@forestandbird.org.nz

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. For information sheet, send stamped addressed envelope to: Fred Allen, PO Box 31-194, Lower Hutt. Tel: (04) 934-0559.

Mangarakau Swamp Field Centre, North West Nelson Borders Kahurangi National Park and Te Tai Tapu Marine Reserve. New, 10 bed lodge with two William Hartree Memorial Lodge, Hawkes Bay bathrooms, fully equipped kitchen. Sleeping bags, Situated 48km from Napier, 8km past Patoka on the towels and food required. Contact Jo-Anne Vaughan Puketitiri Rd (sealed). The lodge is set amid a 14ha – Golden Bay Branch Secretary for details: javn@xtra.co.nz or phone (03) 5248072. scenic reserve and close to many walks, eg: Kaweka Range, Balls Clearing, hot springs and museum. The Tautuku Lodge, Otago lodge accommodates up to 15 people. It has a fully State Highway 92, Southeast Otago. Situated on equipped kitchen including stove, refrigerator and Forest and Bird's 550ha Lenz Reserve 32km south microwave plus tile fire, hot showers. Supply your of Owaka. A bush setting, and many lovely beaches own linen, sleeping bags etc. For information and nearby provide a wonderful base for exploring bookings please send a stamped addressed envelope the Catlins. The lodge, the Coutts cabin and an Ato Pam and John Wuts, 15 Durham Ave, Tamatea, frame sleep 10, 4 and 2 respectively. No Animals. Napier. Tel: (06) 844-4751, Email: wutsie@xtra.co.nz For information and rates please send a stamped addressed envelope to the caretaker: Matiu/Somes Island, Wellington Harbour Diana Noonan, Mirren St, Papatowai, Owaka, RD2. Joint venture accommodation by Lower Hutt Tel: (03) 415-8024, fax (03) 415-8244. Forest and Bird with DOC. A modern family Email: diana.n@clear.net.nz home with kitchen, 3 bedrooms, large lounge and dining room, just 20 mins sailing by ferry from the FOREST & BIRD • AUGUST 2007