No sanctuary option for terns
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…
Small Ōhiwa community are big supporters of predator control
When Ōhiwa resident Andrew Glaser pitched the concept of a management group to coordinate protection efforts on and around the Ōhiwa Headland, the community immediately…
Ambitious plans for Grid-i detector
Gerald Dickinson has a busy year ahead. He’s just won a WWF Innovation Award for his Grid-i pest-detection development project and is aiming to have…
Rats and human disease links
In New Zealand we tend to focus on the harm rats do to our wildlife and ecosystems. But there’s another side to rats that’s even…
Trap and Trigger takes out Innovation Award
Jordan and Mikayla Munn are recent winners of $25,000 in the WWF 2017 Innovation Awards with their venture to use top-of-the-line, military quality, thermal imaging…
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…
Volunteers are vital at Orokonui
A dedicated team of volunteers contribute an impressive 13,000 hours of work each year to Orokonui Ecosanctuary, just north of Dunedin. “Our volunteers help with…
Tools for a predator-free future
The technology associated with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) is getting smart and sophisticated. These intriguing little machines are more than just Christmas toys. High-end models…
App launch tops successful year for Squawk Squad
A while back the Squawk Squad team were thinking about how they could get people more interested in birds in the lead-up to the December launch…
Detecting predators in the city – what works best?
Tracking tunnels, chew cards and WaxTags© are commonly used to detect predator presence and monitor abundance, but in recent years there’s been a new tool…
Bush savvy volunteers have ‘a bit of a scramble’
Field co-ordinator, John Caygill reckons it’s “a bit of a scramble” checking the traplines on the Rainy Creek Project, “And on some lines there’s a…
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…
Sanctuary raises profile of endemic lizards
In Central Otago the locals are becoming increasingly proud of their giant lizards. “Reptiles are our megafauna,” says Grant Norbury, a Landcare Research scientist based…
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…
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…
