Not every species can be saved by moving it to a predator free island. It has helped the black robin - but it won’t help the black-fronted tern. Islands simply don’t have the habitat that the terns need to breed. Black-fronted terns have a small, declining population and are classified as … [Read more...] about No sanctuary option for terns
Native wildlife
Key tips for keeping kea safe
Kea curiosity can be fatal. The Kea Conservation Trust is urging people carrying out ground-based predator control in kea habitat to take extra precautions to avoid injury or death to kea. Together with kea specialists and predator control advisors, the group has put together a Best Practice … [Read more...] about Key tips for keeping kea safe
Feisty petrels still at risk from predators
When it comes to predation risks, it helps if you’re big and have attitude – especially if your breeding colony is on the mainland. Westland Petrels are both big and feisty and appear to be able to cope with some of our more common introduced villains. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not … [Read more...] about Feisty petrels still at risk from predators
Thesis explores anti-predator adaptive behaviour
When mammal predators first arrived in Aotearoa/New Zealand, our native species didn’t know what had hit them and their naiveté led to some rapid extinctions. Have our surviving species ‘wised up’ to mammal threats in the last century or so? If so, what happens when birds are moved to predator free … [Read more...] about Thesis explores anti-predator adaptive behaviour
Takahe protection benefits the neighbours
How much trapping does it take to make a difference? Sometimes even a small difference can make all the difference to a species that is at a borderline point for sustaining its population. In a recent edition of the New Zealand Ornithological Society’s journal Notornis, DOC scientists Jane … [Read more...] about Takahe protection benefits the neighbours
Urban possums – it’s not just about the roses
When possums live in an urban landscape, their fondness for fruit, flowers and foliage quickly makes then unpopular with gardeners. They can be noisy on the roof at night too. But the impact they’re having on local birdlife may not be quite so obvious. Well fed on apples and roses, urban possums … [Read more...] about Urban possums – it’s not just about the roses
Urban kaka – how are they adapting to city life?
As kaka become a more familiar part of everyday suburban lives in some parts of New Zealand, the city-living parrots are also attracting the attention of researchers interested in the parrot/urban mix. How well are urban kaka learning to adapt to city life and what might be some city threats that … [Read more...] about Urban kaka – how are they adapting to city life?
Predators vs Parakeets
Kakariki, our native parakeets mostly nest in holes in trees, where the female incubates the eggs for around 3-4 weeks. That makes female kakariki, as well as the young, particularly vulnerable to predators and could potentially lead to a male bias in the adult population. Red-crowned kakariki … [Read more...] about Predators vs Parakeets
Falcons learn to live an ‘exotic’ life
Before humans arrived, 78% of Aotearoa was covered in native podocarp forest. In the 700 years since we got here, 60% of that forest has gone. The good news is that at least some of our native species are managing to make do in the blocks of exotic forestry plantations that now cover approximately … [Read more...] about Falcons learn to live an ‘exotic’ life
What makes a great kiwi burrow?
Birds can spend a significant portion of their lives at roosting sites – up to two thirds of their time – so it makes sense that suitable sites are important to them. With translocation being a key strategy in rare species management, it would be good to know what features our bird species value in … [Read more...] about What makes a great kiwi burrow?