Emergency pest kits to protect Auckland’s treasured islands

Unwanted stowaways can cause havoc on Auckland’s treasured Hauraki Gulf islands and Auckland Council is taking firm measures to keep them pest free.

The Treasure Islands campaign is a joint biosecurity initiative between Auckland Council and the Department of Conservation (DoC) to protect pest-free islands in the Hauraki Gulf.

As part of the campaign, three pest incursion kits have been produced to help prevent unexpected and unwanted pests from infesting the islands. These will be used as part of a Hauraki Gulf pest incursion emergency response.

Many of the islands are free of predators and provide a safe haven for several of our rarest and most endangered plants and animals including kiwi, tuatara, stitchbird and saddleback.

“It’s very reassuring to know that any pest threatening to destroy our special island places can be dealt with in an efficient and professional manner,” says Parks Recreation and Heritage Forum chair Sandra Coney.

“These kits can be deployed immediately anywhere in the Auckland region including Great Barrier, Rangitoto, Motutapu, Motuihe, Tiritiri Matangi or any other gulf island.”

Two kits are held by council at depots in Auckland and Tryphena on Great Barrier Island, and DoC holds a third kit at Devonport.

As well as the usual response equipment such as spotlights and maps, the kits include traps, tracking tunnels, wag tags, chew cards, flour, sugar and other pest lures. They do not include toxins as it is better that pests are caught and identified as their DNA is an important tool in helping to pinpoint where they came from.

The three kits have been prepared as part of council’s Gulf Biosecurity Plan, and are designed to deal with a variety of pests including possums, stoats, feral cats, Norway rats, ship rats, mice, hedgehogs and Argentine ants.

“We can all play a part in keeping the islands free of pests by checking boats and gear for stowaways before leaving the mainland or travelling between islands,” says Cr Coney.

For further information go to http://www.treasureislands.co.nz.

Editors Note:

July is New Zealand Biosecurity Month. Auckland Council’s biosecurity team work on a range of initiatives to protect our natural environment and primary production, including controlling possums feral goats, pigs and deer, pest plants and kauri dieback disease.

The Treasure Islands campaign is aimed at raising awareness of the unique values of our gulf islands and the need to keep them pest free.

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