6 June 2017

DOC works with Goodnature to protect rare kiwi

The Department of Conservation is working with conservation techology company Goodnature to install the latest traps at a remote South Westland site to better protect one of our rarest kiwi.

DOC rangers have worked alongside Goodnature staff to set up 1200 self–resetting traps across the 11,400 hectare Haast Kiwi Sanctuary to defend Haast tokoeka kiwi from stoats as part of DOC’s Battle for our Birds programme.

The Goodnature trap is the world’s first predator trap that resets itself up to 24 times before it needs to be reloaded manually. The team took about a week to lay the lightweight traps, which are quicker to install than the traditional boxed traps.

DOC Operations Manager for South Westland, Wayne Costello, says the upgraded trap network will take stoat control to a new level and enable a shift to a less intensive approach to managing kiwi in the sanctuary.

“With our improved trap network and more effective Goodnature traps, we aim to suppress stoats year–round in the Haast Kiwi Sanctuary.”

“Previously we’ve collected eggs and reared chicks offsite until they were big enough to cope with stoats but now we will leave them to be raised naturally in the sanctuary.”

The enhanced trapping will allow DOC to reprioritise its intensive Operation Nest EggTM programme to kiwi outside the sanctuary in the surrounding area and spread recovery efforts more widely, says Wayne Costello.

Goodnature founder and Director Stu Barr says they are excited to see their trap being used to help grow the Haast tokoeka population.

“Over the last decade we’ve developed the trap technology to bring back our endangered native birds from the brink and see them recover.”

“DOC trials have shown that the A24 trap is effective in protecting kiwi chicks from stoats and we’re really excited it will be used to help save this rare kiwi species,” says Stu Barr.

DOC is monitoring the survival of kiwi chicks in the sanctuary to measure the effectiveness of managing Haast tokoeka in the wild using a combination of trapping and aerial treatment of biodegradable 1080 when pest plagues occur.

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