Department Of Conservation

Titi, or sooty shearwaters, have one of the longest migrations of any bird on the planet. Department of Conservation sea bird scientist, Graeme Taylor, is on Rangatira Island, in the Chatham Islands, to find out where they go. His team employ a novel approach to try to retrieve 16 geolocators in 10 days. Have a watch… Rangatira Island, is one of New Zealand’s premier sea bird islands. It is free of all introduced pests and it is riddled with sea bird burrows.

The future is looking brighter for the Karure/Kakaruia/Chatham Islands black robin, with ongoing monitoring and research showing encouraging signs of recovery across the species’ range while also helping guide future conservation decisions. Karure/Kakaruia/Chatham Islands black robin. 📷: Leon Everett.

By Nigel Binks, DOC Freshwater Technical Advisor High in the windswept mountain tops of the West Coast, where tarns sit like mirrors among sphagnum mosses and alpine herb fields, a Department of Conservation expedition has uncovered a remarkable surprise – an endangered caddisfly discovered hundreds of kilometres from where it was originally discovered. Collecting samples from a West Coast tarn. 📷: Nigel Binks.

Did you know? Chatham petrel can forage up to 3,000 km from the colony. Chatham petrel conservation There is evidence that Chatham petrels were once widespread on the Chatham Islands and one of the more abundant burrowing seabirds. But with the loss of forest habitat on Chatham and Pitt islands, and the introduction of mammalian predators such as cats, rats and pigs, Chatham petrels became confined to predator-free Rangatira Island by around 1900. Until recently this remained the sole breeding site.

Once common on Maung’Rē/Mangere Island, the ranguru/Chatham petrel disappeared due to habitat loss and cat predation. Work is now underway to re-establish a breeding colony on Maung’Rē/Mangere Island. Biodiversity Ranger Tracie Poole places a chick into its new burrow. 📷: Cassie Mealey Classified as Nationally Vulnerable, the species is largely confined to Hokorereoro/Rangatira Island, with small, translocated populations on  Rangihaute/Rangiauria/Pitt Island and Rēkohu/Wharekauri/Main Chathams.

As the winter snap hits through the country, many of us are reaching for extra layers and staying indoors a little more often. But for our native wildlife, winter is far from a time of inactivity. From alpine parrots playing in the snow to seabirds returning from epic ocean journeys, many species have developed remarkable ways to survive and thrive during the colder months. Here are just a few of the fascinating things happening in nature over winter… Kea amongst the snow.

At Lake Papaitonga in the Horowhenua, a group of Manawatū rangers took on a challenge that had frustrated previous control efforts: how do you find and eliminate purple loosestrife in a complex wetland environment? Purple loosestrife. 📷: DOC Historically, helicopters have been the primary tool for both surveillance and control of purple loosestrife, however this method was proving inefficient.

For Ngāti Awa, conservation is not just about protecting native species, it’s also about restoring the relationship between people and te taiao and creating purposeful employment opportunities in environmental stewardship. This is the kaupapa of Korehāhā Whakahau – a Predator Free 2050 project in Whakatāne delivered by Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Awa.

Nature needs all of us, and the good news is that making a difference doesn’t always require heaps of time and energy. There are things we can do every single day to make a difference. So, wrap on your winter woollies, grab a couple mates and reconnect with nature this winter by doing something to care for it.

The latest Predator Free 2050 tool is a bio-degradable bait pod that can be distributed by a drone pilot with incredible accuracy. When the pods are released from the drone, they break open on impact releasing bait pellets for rats and possums to eat. This is an exciting new method for controlling introduced predators along sensitive boundaries or in remote areas that can’t be safely reached on foot. The Aerospread drone with a bait pod dispenser which is operated by a drone pilot.