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NZ artists to show their wild side in 2011

 —  22/12/2010

Music in Naseby, sculpture in Rotorua and taonga puoro on Stewart Island – New Zealand will be alive with new sights and sounds in 2011 thanks to our latest Wild Creations artists.

Wild Creations is an artist-in-residence programme that we run in partnership with Creative New Zealand. The deal is that each year, three NZ artists get to spend six weeks staying in DOC accommodation in some pretty special parts of our country. They immerse themselves in the places they visit and share its stories and unique qualities through their art – encouraging all of us to see it in a new way.

One of our winning artists is musician, Dudley Benson. He’ll head to Naseby, Central Otago to work on new material inspired by the history, geography and people of the region. Dudley has just released his second album, Forest: Songs by Hirini Melbourne, and completed a ten-date nationwide tour performing songs from the album along with all-vocal ensemble, The Dawn Chorus and dance artist, Cat Ruka.

Dudley Benson, photo by Joshua Thomas

Dudley Benson, photo by Joshua Thomas

Dudley and the Dawn Chorus perform at the Palm Beach Hall in Waiheke, photo by Joshua Thomas & Milana Radojcic

Dudley and the Dawn Chorus perform at the Palm Beach Hall in Waiheke, photo by Joshua Thomas & Milana Radojcic

Another Wild Creations residency winner is the sculptor/writer duo Madeleine Child and Philip Jarvis. They’ll spend their residency in the Rotorua Lakes region, creating objects for an exhibition using ceramic and other materials from the area, and doing a research project to produce a written work. Madeleine and Philip’s past work includes Doodads & Doodahs and Widespread Occurrence of Possible Symbioses, a super colourful reproduction of a coral reef, which they won a Portage Ceramic Award for in 2009.

Philip Jarvis and Madeleine Child

Philip Jarvis and Madeleine Child

Doodads & Doodahs and Widespread Occurrence of Possible Symbioses

Doodads & Doodahs and Widespread Occurrence of Possible Symbioses

Our third Wild Creations artist for 2011 is musician and craftsperson Alistair Fraser, who will spend time on Stewart Island/Rakiura. Alistair is skilled in making taonga puoro – traditional Māori musical instruments – so while he’s on Rakiura he’ll make the most of the access to the island’s unique materials by creating new instruments and recording their sounds. He also plans to create an interpretive display of instruments and recordings to showcase Stewart Island’s conservation values.

Alistair Fraser, photo by Andy Morley-Hall

Alistair Fraser, photo by Andy Morley-Hall

Taonga puoro musical instrument, Putorino Urukehu (totara flute/trumpet)
Taonga puoro musical instrument, Putorino Urukehu (totara flute/trumpet)

Best of luck to our Wild Creations artists as they venture out into NZ’s wild places and I can’t wait to see what they create!

In Bay of Plenty, Otago, Recreation, Southland , ,
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Something’s going bump in the night again in Otago…

Rebecca Wilson —  01/12/2010

Haast tokoeka - Photo Stephen Jaquiery

On Halloween anyone hanging around the Orokonui Ecosanctuary near Dunedin may have heard something eerie in the night. The last weekend of October saw kiwi calling in Otago for the first time in 130 years! Eight Haast tokoeka moved into the neighbourhood on Saturday 30th October.

Telemetry from the boat - Photo Stephen Jaquiery

The Haast Kiwi Team had their work cut out catching these birds on predator free islands in Fiordland where they have been safely housed since removal from the Haast Tokoeka Sanctuary as eggs. The team set off onboard the Adventurer 1 (Adventure Kayak & Cruise) using radio telemetry to narrow down the search for transmittered birds on Rona Island in Lake Manapouri.

Bush bashing telemetry - Photo Stephen Jaquiery

The Pomona Island Charitable Trust keep Pomona and Rona islands predator free, as sanctuaries for vulnerable native species. Trust Secretary Vivian Shaw lent a helping hand to the team catching six tokoeka from Rona. They needed all the hands they could get for the last bird on the list, Brewer Rocks. Late in the day and running out of time the team almost had to give up on Brewer Rocks who was giving them the real run around. Fortunately kiwi dog Tussock was able to move through the undergrowth faster than the human searchers. He pointed out the bird for kiwi ranger Blair to make a last ditch attempt and catch him. With all eight tokoeka safely housed in travel boxes the team set off the next day for Orokonui.

Orokonui pest-proof fence - Photo Orokonui Ecosanctuary

The Otago Natural History Trust erected 8.7km of pest-proof fence in 2007 creating 307ha of protected habitat for native species within the ecosanctuary. Department of Conservation Biodiversity Programme Manager Gareth Hopkins heard about the sanctuary while looking for a safe haven to establish an insurance population of Haast tokoeka and saw great potential. A benefit of this location is its accessibility, “as a fenced sanctuary on the mainland Orokonui will provide an ideal opportunity for community participation in conservation of endangered species” says Haast Kiwi Team Leader Neil Freer.

Te Runanga o Makaawhio, Conservation Minister & Haast Kiwi Team introduce the tokoeka to their new home - Photo Claudia Babirat

Representatives of Te Runanga o Makaawhio lead by Upoko (chief) Rev Richard Wallace were pleased to hand the tokoeka over to the care of local Kati Huirapa Runaka ki Puketeraki.

Upoko David Ellison of Kati Huirapa Runaka te Puketeraki welcomes the tokoeka to Otago - Photo Claudia Babirat

With friends in high places, Conservation Minister Kate Wilkinson flew in to see the tokoeka safely settled in their new home.

Conservation Minister Kate Wilkinson releases tokoeka - Photo Claudia Babirat

There is a lot of responsibility resting on the tiny shoulders of these eight tokoeka.  As founders of a new population on the mainland it’s hoped they will help protect the endangered Haast tokoeka from extinction. “This release marks a huge step towards securing the survival of a unique and iconic taonga species” says Gareth Hopkins “it is a culmination of many years of sensitive negotiation and consultation, and illustrates just what communities and the Department of Conservation can achieve when they work together”.

In Kiwi, Otago, Southland, West Coast
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My mates at DOC win awards for conservation!

Sirocco the Spokesbird —  12/10/2010

Skraark! Sirocco the Kakapo here. Humble and unassuming as I may be, I’m always happy when someone tells me how fantastic I am… But this time it’s my turn to pass on the praise, because those nice folk at DOC have been picking up a few awards so I wanted to tell you all about it!

Up near Auckland (I’ve been there) are a couple of islands called Rangitoto and Motutapu. DOC has been clearing the islands of pests – I mean the small furry pests that eat native birds, not pests like me who jump on people’s heads – so that all my lovely birdy cousins can live there safely.

 

Motutapu Island as seen from the summit of Rangitoto Island, Hauraki Gulf Maritime Park.

Motutapu Island as seen from the summit of Rangitoto Island

 

Now the islands are clear, all sorts of native birds are going back – kakariki, bellbird, pateke, and maybe kiwi and takahe in the future. Who knows, maybe some of my lot might end up there! Anyway, this project picked up an award from a group called the Parks Forum which has members all over the world, so it’s good to know that the work being done here is as famous internationally as… well, as me!

 

Kakariki.

Kakariki return to Rangitoto and Motutapu islands

 

The Parks Forum people also gave DOC an award for helping create the fantastic Otago Central Rail Trail. Apparently this is for bicycles, not for trains, and as I’m not very good at peddling I’ve not been there. But 20,000 of you lovely people use it each year and it’s helped transform the area. So good on you guys, what a great way of taking something old and bringing it up to date (there are a couple of rangers I know who could use the same treatment)!

 

Otago Central Rail Trail. Photo: J Edginton.

Otago Central Rail Trail

 

Finally, I heard this from one of my lovely friends on Facebook. A new book* about conservation says this:

“The prevention of the Kakapo’s extinction & the relatively rosy future it now faces represent one of the great achievements in global bird conservation. New Zealand has been at the forefront of… developing & implementing conservation solutions for species on the brink of extinction since the pioneering efforts of Richard Henry… The country’s conservation agencies, helped enormously by a steady stream of volunteers & donors, who have invested so much time, money & effort in trying to prevent the extinction of the Kakapo & many other extraordinary birds, have earned the enduring respect of the international conservation community.”

They’ve certainly got my respect, which is why I get up close and personal with them at any opportunity! So a big wings-up to all the DOC team, the volunteers, and the lovely folk at Rio Tinto who are paying for most of this… okay enough, it’s starting to sound like an Oscar acceptance speech!

An Oscar? Hmm, that’s something I haven’t done yet…

Links:

Rangitoto and Motutapu islands restoration project

Rangitoto and Motutapu restoration project wins international honours, media release

Native birds

Parks Forum

DOC wins international honours for conservation

Otago Central Rail Trail

*Facing Extinction – the World’s rarest birds and the race to save them. Paul Donald, Nigel Collar, Stuart Marsden, Debbie Pain. A&C Black publishers.

In Animal pests, Auckland, Native animals, Otago, Recreation, Sirocco the kakapo, Southland
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Animal pest control – a measured approach

Andrew Lonie —  21/09/2009

So we went in and nailed some rats and goats – but how many, where, and what difference did it make anyway?

Good information on how much effort goes in – and on what results come out – is vital to running safe, effective, value-for-money pest control operations.

As an information management officer/kaitiaki for DOC, one of my jobs is to help the guys and gals running the field operations by mapping all their hard won info.

As they say, a picture tells 1000 words, and that’s where GIS (Geographic Information Systems) comes in. Recently I’ve been involved in 1080 aerial rat control operations in both the Catlins and Dart Valley forests, home to the endangered mōhua/yellowhead.

Downloading helicopter flight logs in the incident tent. Photo: Sue Scott.

Downloading helicopter flight logs in the incident tent. Photo: Sue Scott.

 Using GIS, combined with helicopter flight logging systems, we can build up a real-time picture of how the bait is being spread. This is important because we need to make sure that A. bait doesn’t get dropped outside the area we have consent for (i.e. it’s safe), and B. the whole area is covered evenly with no gaps (effective and value-for-money).

Discussing the mapped bait coverage mid-operation. Photo: Andrew Lonie.

Discussing the mapped bait coverage mid-operation. Photo: Andrew Lonie.

The beauty of downloading and mapping bait coverage on the day is that we can send pilots back out to fill in any holes on the spot – saving all the hassle and cost of rerunning the operation. It also gives us the ability to immediately deploy a clean-up crew to sensitive areas if boundaries have been compromised, reducing the risk to non-targets and the public.

Space for computer gear can be limited! Photo: Andrew Lonie.

Space for computer gear can be limited! Photo: Andrew Lonie.

Measuring predator abundance before and after – using ink cards that record paw traffic through ‘tracking tunnels’ – then gives us a measure of the poison’s effect on the rat population.

Helicopter GPS (Global Positioning System) logging is also important in other animal pest programmes, such as aerial goat control in the Wakatipu region. By using modern GIS mapping to combine GPS kill locations with the time-stamped helicopter flight logs, I can quickly measure how much result we are getting for how much effort in different control blocks. Field staff can then see how results stack up against operational targets, and decide on future priorities.

Analysis of goats killed per unit flying time in the Wakatipu region. Map: Andrew Lonie

Analysis of goats killed per unit flying time in the Wakatipu region. Map: Andrew Lonie

In Animal pests, Native animals, Otago
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