Here’s an update from the Karioi Maunga ki te Moana project…. Please see below volunteer opportunities for seabird monitoring and trap deployment!
It’s an amazing sight to behold – Grey-faced petrel – also known as Oi, flying through a cold wintery storm at dusk and nesting on the Karioi coastline.
It’s an amazing sight to behold – Grey-faced petrel – also known as Oi, flying through a cold wintery storm at dusk and nesting on the Karioi coastline. That’s the dream for local volunteers and partner organisations involved in the Karioi – Maunga ki te Moana project. That Karioi will once more be inundated with native seabirds – as well as forest birds. However – birds, and especially Oi, will only breed successfully if protected from predators like stoats, feral cats, dogs, rats and possums that threaten the eggs, young chicks and adults on the nest.
Thanks to supporters like you, this dream has come far over the last few years. And now the dream to restore seabirds to Karioi came one step closer to reality recently with the news that the project was to receive significant funds from NZ Lottery Board. This fund as well as input from some of NZ’s top conservation experts has significantly boosted the project’s capacity. The next three years are going to be immensely exciting with the current trapping network expanding from its current coverage of 130 hectares to over 1800 hectares.
The project partners will cut up to 40 km of new tracks this year and up to 500 stoat and ferret traps will be deployed across the mountain. We’ll also continue work with local landowners to implement predator control on private land around the mountain too – and this is already ongoing with supportive landowners involved from Ngaruanui Beach to Te Toto Gorge.
The project has come a long way since its initiative in 2009 – when trapping of rats, possums and stoats started at Upper Wainui Reserve with a few enthusiastic volunteers – and there are plans underway for more volunteer opportunities to help with seabird monitoring and to deploy traps over the mountain starting in April/May.
For more information or to register your interest to volunteer either regularly or occasionally please email wordsbybexie@gmail.com. Seabird monitoring starts this week, and we are seeking more volunteers to help ASAP!
Also, feel free to join our Facebook group Karioi Maunga Volunteers
https://www.facebook.com/groups/748382735277223/
– Bexie, Kristel and Mark
Karioi Maunga ki te Moana