Conservation blog

Jobs at DOC: Nelson Lakes Ranger, Jenny Long

Department of Conservation — 11/04/2014

Come behind the scenes and into the jobs, the challenges, the highlights, and the personalities of the people who work at the Department of Conservation (DOC).

Today we profile DOC ranger Jenny Long, based in Nelson Lakes

Plucky little tomtit caught by mistnet while I was accompanying a PhD student studying avian malaria

At work

Some things I do in my job include…

My main job is to run one of the six trial sites for DOC’s self-resetting trap trial.

Monitoring wrybill and oystercatcher breeding and survival in the Rangitata River as part of a wind farm mitigation project

This one is based at the Rotoiti Nature Recovery Project (RNRP) Mainland Island in Nelson Lakes National Park.

This involves collecting data on trap performance, monitoring mustelids and ensuring the traps in the field are set up and checked correctly.

I also get to join in with a wide range of other biodiversity work including monitoring native species like weka, robins and kākā, trapping/poisoning other pest species and engaging with volunteers and other members of the public.

This helps achieve DOC’s vision by…

Mainland Islands were created to be places where we could test new methods and technology, so our work in the RNRP is geared towards improving techniques for tackling conservation challenges nationwide.

The work my teammates and I do also directly helps protect the native species within the area that we do pest control, as well as helping to spread the conservation message to the wider public when they come to visit Nelson Lakes and enjoy the wildlife and stunning views.

The best bit about my job is…

Spending most of my time outdoors amongst the beautiful mountains of Nelson Lakes, doing something I really care about, and working with great like-minded people.

Most scenic stoat trapline in this neck of the woods–along the top of the St Arnaud range

The most surreal DOC moment I’ve had so far was…

When we had the NZ Air Force (who have a training base nearby) helping us to take out an old hut, and I was flying along above the forest in a noisy open-sided Iroquois helicopter with soldiers in uniform… I felt like I was in a Vietnam war movie!

Catch of the day: a stoat with racing stripes!

The DOC employee that inspires or enthuses me most is…

Everyone I’ve met in DOC has been pretty inspiring, from the scientists who do the research to inform decisions, through to the managers who make those decisions, to the rangers who make it all happen by slogging around the hills day in, day out.

But one person who stands out for me is of course my partner Joris Tinnemans, beech tree-shooter extraordinaire, who is always so cheerful and enthusiastic no matter how wet the West Coast bush, how uncooperative the birds he’s trying to monitor, or how many anchors he’s lost overboard!

On a personal note

The song that always cheers me up is…

Longtime by Salmonella Dub. Works every time.

If I could trade places with any other person for a week it would be…

The person back in time who was most instrumental in introducing mustelids to New Zealand and I’d change my mind!

The best thing to do after a long hot day working at Lake Rotoiti!

My best ever holiday was…

Going to Transylvania (in Romania) with Joris to do volunteer work for a PhD student studying the impact on large carnivores of Romania’s drive for development since joining the EU. It was fascinating seeing the old sustainable lifestyle of the Transylvanian villagers and the incredible biodiversity in their mosaic of forest, wood pastures and small farms. It was also a joy to see carnivorous mammals like foxes, martens and bears in an ecosystem where they belong.

If I could be any New Zealand native species I’d be…

A peripatus (velvet worms)! They look like pudgy worms with legs, how could anyone not love them?

If I wasn’t working at DOC, I’d like to…

In my dream world I’d love to travel around the world doing conservation work, learning the languages of local people and finding out different ways of approaching the wide variety of conservation challenges we face worldwide. Of course, in my dream world I could also do this without burning tonnes of fossil fuels on long haul flights…

Deep and meaningful

My favourite quote is…

There are oodles of witty and inspiring quotes to choose from, but a more serious one that helps whenever I’m getting overly frustrated at not being able to solve the world’s environmental problems single-handed is this one:

“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

The best piece of advice I’ve ever been given is…

“Give it a go”—given to me by my parents about every single idea I’ve had for a change in life direction, including about-turns between studying graphics, doing a car mechanic course, studying linguistics and marine biology at university, going to vet school, mountain-bike instructing in America, leaving my GIS job to go back to uni to study Wildlife Management… and so on.

I don’t regret any of the things I’ve tried my hand at, I’ve met so many great people and had a lot of memorable experiences.

My awesome parents got me outdoors right from the beginning! Here’s dad taking me abseiling at Mt Ruapehu when I was two

In work and life I am motivated by…

The friendly and inspiring people I meet everywhere, the beauty of nature, and the unfailing ability of life to be funny and take you by surprise. Like when you’ve organised to go on a great chocolate-fuelled tramping trip over Easter, only to end up in hospital on nil-by-mouth with a second bout of appendicitis (it can happen) while surrounded by taunting Easter eggs from well-meaning visitors!

My conservation advice to New Zealanders is…

It’s not a new idea, but for anyone who is already passionate about conservation my advice would be to do your best to share this passion with others who aren’t already involved.

Take friends of friends tramping/kayaking/biking, give family a bird-feeder and stoat trap set for Christmas, become a scout leader and take kids on outdoors trips to get them stoked on nature early—there are myriad ways to spread your enthusiasm and help make it normal to be environmentally aware.

Question of the week

If you had to change your first name, what would you change it to and why?

I would change it to Basil, because there aren’t enough Basils in the world these days.

In Animal pests, Jobs at DOC, Nelson/Marlborough Mainland islands, Nelson Lakes National Park, rotoiti nature recovery project

I’d like some kiwi in my backyard too….

Department of Conservation — 10/04/2014

Kiwi releases attract plenty of media attention, often triggering individuals and groups to consider establishing kiwi in their patch.

Now, new guidelines have been created to help people understand the process and requirements.

DOC Ranger, Liz Maire, explains…

Up close—the public get their first experience of kiwi

Kiwi releases are good news stories and generate positive and widespread coverage. This media attention often results in a flurry of public enquiries about how individuals or groups can establish kiwi in their local reserve or the bush block at the back of the farm.

Kiwi releases generate positive and widespread coverage

DOC Biodiversity Services Ranger, Pete Graham showing some of the children the kiwi pre release into a burrow.

The Northland Kiwi Forum Working Group and Kiwis for kiwi identified that, although there are many groups and individuals that aspire to have kiwi in their patch, there was no single resource that outlined the process and considerations for them.

Many individuals described obtaining this information as daunting and confusing.

A guide to establishing new kiwi populations (PDF, 2091K) was developed to fill this gap and provide a first check of the journey they might be embarking upon.

The guide addresses the key considerations of communication, planning and commitment. These are then expanded upon to address:

– Habitat and threat management requirements;

– Identifying kiwi that might be used to establish a new population;

– Key relationships, support and approvals required; and

– Considerations for ongoing management once established.

The Northland Kiwi Forum Working Group in conjunction with Kiwis for kiwi drew upon the experiences and frustrations of applicants and approvers of past translocations in developing the guidelines.

Although drafted with an emphasis on establishing and protecting populations of Northland brown kiwi, the document should also be useful for other kiwi taxa or even other species.

Toby Shanley, Kevin and Gill Adshead of Mataia.

Kiwis for kiwi, iwi representatives, Department of Conservation and Auckland Zoo kiwi specialists about to ‘hand the kiwi over’ to the people of Mataia.

Jo Ritchie releasing a kiwi into a temporary wooden burrow.

Wendy Sporle of Kiwis for kiwi introducing Gill and Kevin Adhead of Mataia to one of their new kiwi, surrounded by the public.

The Northland Kiwi Forum

The Northland Kiwi Forum is a collaboration of agencies, individuals, iwi, community groups, farmers, foresters, and central and local government staff who are actively involved in managing the Northland taxon of Northland brown kiwi on public and private land.

Kiwis for kiwi

Kiwis for kiwi is a non profit organisation that supports the work of more than 80 community groups around the country, providing funding for vital kiwi conservation, breeding and hatching programmes.

In Kiwi, Northland, Volunteers establishing kiwi, kiwi releases, translocations

Photo of the week: Coromandel kiwi move to Motutapu

Department of Conservation — 09/04/2014

Today’s photo shows one of the Coromandel brown kiwi relocated to predator-free Motutapu Island in the Hauraki Gulf last week.

It was the biggest ever single translocation of Coromandel brown kiwi and was done to create new diversity and future-proof the species.

Did you know?

There are only around 1,500 Coromandel brown kiwi on the Coromandel Peninsula.

There are 5 kiwi species:

Little spotted kiwi on several offshore islands and at Karori Sanctuary in Wellington
Great spotted kiwi/roroa in the northern South Island
Brown kiwi in the North Island
Rowi at Okarito, on the West Coast of the South Island
Tokoeka in the South Island (Fiordland, the Haast Range and on Stewart Island) and on Kapiti Island.

2 of the 5 kiwi species have distinct geographical varieties within them:

Brown kiwi have four geographically and genetically distinct forms: Northland, Coromandel, western and eastern.
Tokoeka also have four distinct geographical forms: Haast, northern Fiordland, southern Fiordland, and Stewart Island.

In Islands, Kiwi, Photo of the week Brown Kiwi, Coromandel, Kiwis for kiwi, Moehau, Motutapu Island, translocation

Celebrating 150 years of the Arthur’s Pass

Department of Conservation — 08/04/2014

Arthur’s Pass recently celebrated 150 years since the European opening of the route that linked the east coast to the gold fields in the west.

The official opening the new Arthur’s Pass Walking Track was one of the events that marked the occasion.

DOC Ranger Tom Williams, writes:

DOC Director-General, Lou Sanson, speaking at the official opening of the Arthur’s Pass Walking Track

150 years ago today (or thereabouts), in a time when an ‘epic’ was just a part of everyday life, the Dobson brothers stumbled across a pass linking the east coast to the gold fields in the west. That pass was Arthur’s Pass.

Legend has it that Arthur’s Pass isn’t named after Arthur Dudley Dobson as such, but rather that someone remarked that Arthur’s pass was the most suitable pass for direct travel to the west.

The name stuck, and Arthur’s Pass became one of only two places in New Zealand to have an apostrophe! (The other is Hawke’s Bay.)

Celebrations of this feat of discovery occurred over the weekend and resulted in the population of the pass swelling by over 400%.

Cutting the ribbon! Minister for the Environment, Amy Adams, and Zeb Patterson (the great, great, great, grandson of Arthur Dudley Dobson), open the Arthur’s Pass Walking Track

Festivities commenced on the Friday night with the unveiling of a bronze kea statue. As we unveiled the taonga, a member of the audience did a sterling haka, and a real kea flew over us.

Arthur’s Pass is one of the best places in New Zealand to see these amazing birds.

Arthur’s Pass is one of the best places in New Zealand to see kea.

In typical Arthur’s Pass fashion, the main attraction—the official opening of the Arthur’s Pass walking track—was accompanied by clear skies and warm weather.

The creation of the new track, however, was no easy feat. DOC staff, and the contractors constructing the track, had to cope with the extremes of local weather.

So far the track has coped with many deluges of rain, gale force winds, blistering sun, a minus 17 degree frost, and a 2 metre snow dump!

Testing out the new Arthur's Pass Walking Track.

Many people took the opportunity to take a guided walk of the track and discover some of the magical flora and fauna of the pass

For those travelling to other places through the Pass, the route travelled has changed significantly from what it was 150 years ago.

Back then the journey took a long time. Once the coach road was constructed (can you believe that they managed to build the road from east to west in one year!) the journey was reduced to four days. Today it is a pleasant two hours to Christchurch, or one hour to the West Coast.

Discover the heritage and fantastic scenery of the Arthur’s Pass walking track yourself. Further information and directions can be found on the DOC website.

In Walking/hiking/tramping Arthur's Pass, Canterbury, Historic, kea, National Park, Trail, West Coast

Beauty and the bog

Department of Conservation — 07/04/2014

Anyone who thinks swamps and bogs are merely dirty puddles of water to avoid at all costs is missing out on hidden treasure! DOC’s Jack Van Hal explains…

The swamp helmet orchid, otherwise known as Corybas carsei, loves life in the bog. Once upon a time it could be found in several bogs, but today these little beauties occur only in one site, in one peat bog within the Whangamarino Wetlands in the Waikato.

Swamps eye view. Photo: George Novak / NZ Geographic.

Swamp eye view

It is a tiny nationally critical orchid, only 10-30 mm tall at flowering, which has suffered from orchid thieves and wetland drainage.

The single remaining population at Whangamarino is currently at risk from vegetation succession within its preferred habitat, among open sedge and wire rush.

Corybas beauty

The flower is a conspicuous maroon-red in colour and is raised above a single leaf. It appears from September through to November. It is such a rare thing that New Zealand Geographic recently came to photograph it for an article, but they were not allowed to identify its exact location.

New Zealand Geographic photographer, George Novak, photographing Corybas carsei.

New Zealand Geographic photographer, George Novak, on assignment at Whangamarino

At Whangamarino, DOC staff have been managing the threats to this little beauty and monitoring shows that numbers have increased from a low of 77 individuals in 2008 to 195 individuals by 2011.

Rangers have been helping to create disturbance regimes by controlled burns to promote growth of the orchid.

Controlled burn of Corybas carsai habitat

Other management and research options being explored include translocations to appropriate habitat within and to other nearby wetlands, and time lapse photography to determine how the orchids are pollinated and what time of year they flower and produce seed.

Thanks to the concerted effort under the Arawai Kākāriki wetland restoration programme the plight of Corybas carsei looks promising.

In Native plants, Waikato, Wetlands Corybas carsei, native plants, orchids, swamp helmet orchid, Whangamarino

Jobs at DOC: Nelson Lakes Ranger, Jenny Long

At work

On a personal note

Deep and meaningful

Question of the week