Today’s photo shows a ferny glade in Iris Burn valley, Fiordland National Park.
DOC completed its ‘Battle for our Birds’ pest control operation in the Iris Burn valley on Monday.
Iris Burn was identified as one of the sites where rare native species, such as the critically endangered long-tailed bat, whio/blue duck, kākā, and Fiordland tokoeka kiwi, were under greatest threat from rising numbers of rats and stoats.
It is one of 22 confirmed ‘Battle for our Birds’ operations that will use aerially applied 1080 to knock down rising predator numbers fuelled by unusually heavy seeding in South Island beech forests.
Monitoring the effects of the pest control operation will be undertaken in coming weeks.
Photo: Phil Norton | CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Awesome photo Philip! I’ve never walked the Kepler but it looks incredible.
We have great memories of the Kepler. I was thrilled to see two Yellow Crowned Parakeets up close at the end near the Waiau River. These birds were once seen in mobs so it is sad to find only individuals. It is so important that we don’t lose them altogether.
Thanks heaps for your comment Philip. We couldn’t agree more — it is so important that we “battle for our birds”. Thanks also for letting us share your beautiful photo. It was a real pleasure looking through your portfolio of work on flickr.