A brief History of Ducks Unlimited Operation Pateke.

Neil Hayes QSM, DUNZ Life Member

Time is overdue to document what I believe is the most significant contribution made by any conservation group in the world – that is Ducks Unlimited (NZ) efforts to save the endangered NZ Brown Teal (Anas chlorotis) from extinction.

The contribution by DUNZ starting in 1975 was inspirational. DUNZ was founded in 1974 by Jack Worth - with a few like-minded individuals: Ian Pirani, Paul Pirani, Neil Hayes and Trevor Voss - all wetland and waterfowl enthusiasts.

In 1974 Jack suggested the DU profile could be considerably enhanced by dedicated recovery programmes for brown teal and grey teal. “Operation Pateke” and “Operation Gretel” were launched with clear objectives. These project titles were unique to DU and it was the first organisation to use the word “Pateke” (Maori brown teal).

Operation objectives were:
1. To establish 50 breeding pairs of Brown Teal in captivity
2. To breed over 1000 Brown Teal in captivity and release them into suitable areas
3. To save Brown Teal from extinction

In 1976 I was appointed Director of the project and continued in this role until 1991. My introduction to Pateke was in 1970 during a visit to waterfowl enthusiast Trevor Voss – a dairy farmer near Stratford. Trevor was the pioneer of breeding Pateke in captivity and on the day of our visit he had 21 recently reared Pateke in a mobile aviary on his lawn.

Just on dusk Trevor asked me to help catch three Pateke in an aviary to move to another aviary. The aviary was knee deep in grass and after a half hour of trying to find them we gave up – but just on dusk they appeared! I thought what a strange bird and I’ve spent the last 40 years attempting to understand Pateke.

By 1973 I was breeding Pateke in captivity, starting with a wild pair caught on Great Barrier Island by NZ Wildlife Service. Within three months they hatched five offspring and reared all five.

Over the next 19 years we reared close to 200 Pateke in our Wainuiomata home garden – this featured numerous times on national TV, generating great publicity for DU and Pateke!
Pateke in the wild - 1973
My introduction to Pateke in the wild was during a trip to Russell, Bay of Islands, December 1973 to visit to wife Sylvia’s sister’s family.

My interest in saving brown teal prompted Sylvia’s sister to say “there are hundreds just down the road”. How right she was! At Parakura Bay south of Russell on the east coast we counted 96 brown teal and when Grant Dumbell was completing his PhD on Pateke between in 1986 - 1991 there was still a healthy population. By the mid 1990s there were none.

Brief natural history of Pateke

Fossil research by Trevor Worthy determined Pateke have been present in New Zealand for over 10,000 years and was once the most populous New Zealand waterfowl. Pateke were found throughout New Zealand’s once vast wetlands and inhabited lakes, rivers, lagoons, ponds, creeks, forest streams, swamps and estuaries. The 2002 fossil research confirmed what Peter Scott (Founder of the Wildfowl & Welands Trust) wrote in 1960. “Brown teal are an ancient and primitive form of duck”.

Large Pateke populations were also on Stewart Island, the last sighting in 1972 and on the Chatham Islands, last sighting in 1920. Pateke were believed to have become extinct in the South Island during the 1980s.

So, from millions of Pateke throughout the country until 1800 the decline to less than 850 by 1999 represents the world’s most dramatic decline of a waterfowl species!

Pateke are believed to have evolved from the very beginning of life in New Zealand, resulting in them having many unique dabbling duck behavioural characteristics, as well as unique colour, body shape, egg size, vocal sound and more.

Once New Zealand’s most common duck, estimated at several million, Pateke have been under threat of premature extinction (influenced by humans) since Europeans arrived in New Zealand in the 1840s; accompanied by rats, cats, dogs, ferrets, stoats, weasels and hedgehogs; all of which found the country’s endemic birds easier to kill and probably more palatable than imported rabbits, hares, possums, mallards, black swan, geese, etc! These alien predators also enjoy the eggs of our endemic birds and so wreaked havoc amongst the country’s endemic bird numbers. This was recognised as early as the mid 1850s.

European immigrants bought sporting firearms and duck hunting had a major impact on Pateke survival and in spite of Pateke being accorded legal protection in 1921 many continued to be shot during duck hunting season.

Wetland destruction was also rampant until the 1990s this, in association with predation and duck hunting, impacted heavily on Pateke survival. Prior to 1990 70 percent of New Zealand once vast wetlands and 50 percent of New Zealand indigenous forests had been eliminated.

Self introduced species such as harrier and pukeko also influenced the decline of Pateke, and all New Zealand endemic birds, frogs and invertebrates.

Captive breeding While captive breeding of Pateke was gradually increasing, with 19 birds reared in 1976, 18 in 1977, 29 in 1978 and 45 in 1979, numbers increased dramatically soon after DU was awarded a Mobil Oil Environmental Grant in 1979 - to hold a Brown Teal Management Seminar in Auckland in July 1980. Twenty five people attended, including from the NZ Wildlife Service, personnel from Auckland and Wellington Zoos, major aviculturalists and DU members keen to join the recovery programme. In addition to this important award, and immediately upon his appointment as Director of the NZ Wildlife Service Ralph Adams MBE phoned the DU Secretary in 1979 informing him that the entire brown teal recovery programme was to be handed to Ducks Unlimited. The proceedings of the seminar were published by DU in 1981, the outcome being that annual productivity jumped to 89 birds reared by DU participants in 1981. Another 47 were reared by the Mt Bruce National Wildlife Centre.

The published document entitled “The Aviculture, Re-Establishment & Status of the New Zealand Brown Teal” covered aviary design, the needs of Pateke in captivity, the Re-Establishment programme and the numbers of Pateke in the wild in 1981. After publication, Pateke reared in captivity expanded dramatically, as did the number of breeders and by 1984 DU had 39 captive breeders spread from Northland to Southland holding over 60 pairs and producing over 100 Pateke/season, with a record 153 reared in 1987. All this was greatly assisted by the injection of new blood from Great Barrier Island in 1974 by the Wildlife Service and a 1987 capture totally organised by DUNZ. For many years the Wildlife Service paid breeders $5 and DU also paid each breeder $5 for each Pateke reared.

DU’s success with Pateke was recognised as the world’s most successful captive breeding programme for an endangered waterfowl species and the same DU flock mating programme began to be used world-wide and is now a standard procedure. Such status and recognition was an incredible achievement for DUNZ.

• Nocturnal behaviour. It is believed this trait was generated by Haast’s Eagle (Harpagornis moorei) and the trait, once termed as crepuscular, expanded as the harrier population grew into millions
• Unlike other endemic waterfowl Pateke were once widespread throughout every type of New Zealand wetland.
• Selective in pairing behaviour and a monogamous relationship.
• The murderous nature of adult pairs in captivity, where it is impossible to hold more that one pair of teal in an aviary, and towards their fledged progeny; but birds of the year will live quite happily together until pairing commences – after which a pair must be removed very quickly to their own aviary.
• The murderous nature of pairs in the wild – towards other pairs and their progeny, particularly the male, towards his fledged offspring.
• Long-term parental attention provided to their progeny by both parents, at least until the progeny are fully fledged.
• An incredibly long lifespan in captivity. 
• Great climbing ability.
• Incredible vulnerability to predation.
• Incredible vulnerability to being shot during duck season – in spite of total protection since 1921. 
• Preference for estuarine habitat since Pateke began its retreat from predators.
• Colour, body shape, size, weight, courtship, displays, and vocal sounds.
• Pre and post-copulatory behaviour - invariably there isn’t any!
• Feeding patterns.
• What they eat.
• Small clutch size – 5-6 eggs.
• Egg shape, size and weight – huge eggs for size of female.
• Colour, size and weight of progeny.
• Specialised bill, with very prominent lamellae.
• Flocking behaviour – teal become very gregarious after breeding season and head to favourite flock site.
• Unique habitat requirements.
• Preference for walking instead of flying.
• Failure to adapt to environmental changes.

The releases at Puke Puke and Nga Manu were organised by DUNZ members and whilst a number of birds released at Puke Puke reared young, very few of the birds survived for long periods, simply because the reasons for Pateke heading for extinction had not been addressed; the main reason being PREDATORS, accompanied by duck shooting.

Other releases in the Manawatu were undertaken by the NZ Wildlife Service, as was a single release at the Kaihoka Lakes, Nelson in 1978.

In addition and knowing that Pateke have done well on off-shore islands three DU organised three releases of Pateke on Matakana Island, Tauranga, between 1980 - 1981. Sadly, all the releases between 1969 and 1983, including those on Matakana Island failed to re-establish and in 1984 it was decided to concentrate the release programme in Northland, along the east coast that was still quality Pateke habitat – and where approximately 1200 Pateke were still surviving.

Release programme in Northland

By 1984 large numbers were reared each season and the Northland release programme commenced in August 1984. From 1984 to 1991 all Northland releases were organised by DUNZ, with considerable support from Dr Murray Williams of the NZ Wildlife Service.

Jim Campbell, Allan Elliott and I spend seven years carrying Pateke from Masterton to Northland, mainly in Jim’s Chevy Ute.
The August releases took place at the 350-hectare Government owned Mimiwhangata Farm Park on the east coast just north of Whangarei, where considerable Pateke habitat had been created and the farm was just south of the famous Helena Bay Pateke roost site: it regularly supported 50-70 Pateke and was only a stone throw from the large holiday camping grounds.

Two large lagoons were created by the Wildlife Service, together with lots of small breeding ponds and there was a small estuary on the farm. On the same day another Northland release took place at the upper reaches of the Matapouri Estuary – a little south of Mimiwhangata and only 20 minutes drive from Whangarei.
Recalling that in England pre-release aviaries are always used for holding captive reared birds for several weeks before the aviary door is opened. So for the first Northland release of captive reared DU Pateke the Wildlife Service erected large aviary at both Mimiwhangata and Matapouri - to hold the birds while they became adjusted to their new surroundings. At the Nga Manu Sanctuary a pre-release aviary was also used.

The aviaries worked well at Nga Manu and Mimiwhangata, but at Matapouri several Pateke escaped before a hole was plugged!
In total 42 Pateke were released at Mimiwhangata and 54 at Matapouri on August 4, 1984 and because Pateke were uplifted from various breeders on the way to Northland they had to be banded prior to being place in the pre-release. These two sites were the only Northland site where pre-release aviaries were used.

Between 1984 and 1991 a total of just under 600 captive reared brown teal were released by DU onto five different wetlands in Northland - Mimiwhangata, Matapouri, Takou Bay, Purerua and Urupukapuka Island - with all releases carried out by DU personnel. One of the most remarkable things about all DU releases of Pateke between 1975-1991 is that only one bird of over 1000 released by DU had died in transit.

Two of the preferred Northland sites were Mimiwhangata and Purerua – with 295 Pateke being released at Mimiwhangata and 320 at the Purerua. The DU Pateke Recovery Team believed the 7-hectare created lake on the Purerua Peninsula, just north of Kerikeri was an excellent site and Pateke were known to breed there and in adjacent wetland.

Sadly the Dept of Conservation controlled Pateke Recovery group ignored the Purerua site for over 10-years.

Survival in Northland

Survival at Mimiwhangata, Purerua and Matapouri was extremely good – in spite of predator control only taking place at Mimiwhangata: and for only a short time.

A photo taken in early December 1987 showed 45 Pateke clearly identified from a release of 64 three and a half months earlier. Over 60 Pateke were present and it is believed all 64 were still alive.

The survival rate at Mimiwhangata was largely due to Pateke being fed a supplementary diet every morning and an extensive predator control programme.

The survival at the Purerua site was also good, but they needed the supplementary food and predator control. There were numerous reports of Pateke being seen at many sites in the district.
Matapouri survival was also encouraging and 18-months after the first release I counted 22 Pateke in the estuary.

Modern era (1991-2014) recovery programme

Unfortunately when DOC took over the recovery programme in 1991 they categorically stated that no more than 40 Pateke would be required each season. The result was numerous Pateke breeders threw in the towel and DU had a period of loss of interest.

By 1993 Pateke numbers in the wild were plummeting. I discussed this in an article published in NZ Outdoor magazine, entitled “The rapidly approaching demise of the New Zealand Brown Teal.” The Department took note and held an informal recovery group meeting at the Mimiwhangata Farm Park. The meeting decided to concentrate Pateke recovery in Northland with expanded predator control and over the next two years Northland Pateke numbers increased steadily. With Pateke also present on a number of small offshore islands; including Kapiti, Urupukapuka, Tiritiri Matangi and Little Barrier the total number in the wild in 1987 was 3000. But, by 2000 Pateke in Northland had declined to 350, on Great Barrier Island to 500 and on the Coromandel Peninsula to less than 20 birds. Two years after the involvement DOC again lost interest in Northland and commenced a release programme into totally unsuitable areas; such as Travis Wetland in Christchurch, Tawharunui (Warkworth), Cape Kidnappers (Hawke’s Bay), Warrenheip (Waikato) and more recently Fiordland. Though these sites had predator control programmes they all failed because:

1. There are no wild populations of Pateke in the area.
2. Habitat was not suitable.
3. No suitable flock-sites.
4. No suitable Pateke habitat adjacent to these sites.
5. No suitably protected adjacent wetland for population expansion.

The result - by 1999 nation-wide Pateke numbers had again dramatically plummeted – from close to 3000 in 1987 (Including Pateke on offshore island) to less than 800 in 1999 - and our graph showed that Pateke would be extinct on the mainland by 2004 and totally extinct by 2015.

Bearing in mind the 3000 recorded in 1987 was likely a conservation figure the dramatic race towards extinction is the most disastrous ever recorded for a rare and endangered waterfowl species.

The Race Towards Extinction – 1988 to 1998
3000 *
1700 *
1200 *
1000 *
900 *
800 *
 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998

In September 1999 two Pateke pragmatists featured on TV ONE News and in no uncertain terms pointed out that brown teal were in grave danger of premature extinction, and severely criticising the Department’s performance in the Pateke recovery programme.
The TV ONE presenter was undoubtedly the ‘star’ of the news item – standing in front of a Pateke aviary, she said “The whole recovery programme is a simple one, you give brown teal a protected environment like this and they live to be 24 years and 3 months.”
The outcome from this news item was that the Department carried out an audit of the programme, interviewing 39 people who were known to have had some involvement with brown teal and in 2000 the findings, recommendations and objectives of how to save Pateke from extinction were published. A two-day seminar/workshop was held in Kerikeri to determine how best the Audit recommendations could be implemented.
The workshop recommended the implementation of major predator control programmes and the race of Pateke towards extinction has being retarded. The Pateke population is steadily increasing, but only in the three areas of the country now recognised as vital to long-term Pateke survival; Northland, Great Barrier Island and Coromandel Peninsula; all three areas were where Pateke began their escape from the massive nation-wide increase in predators - feral cats, ferrets, stoats, weasels, rats, hedgehogs, harriers, pukeko, etc, believed to have been during the late early 1900s.

The rapid decline in Northland and the Coromandel can be attributed to the spread of predators, but on Great Barrier Island where there are no mustelids, hedgehogs or duck hunting, but large populations of feral cats, two species of rat, feral dogs (lost by pig hunters), Pukeko and the harrier hawk, the race towards extinction can be clearly attributed to an explosion of predators in all three areas; along with an almost total lack of endangered species management. Domestic dogs are also known to eliminate Pateke in these critically important areas.

Success on the Coromandel Peninsula

Little is known about the retreat of Pateke to Northland, the Coromandel and Great Barrier Island; though Great Barrier Island once had the largest national population of Pateke. However, in the early 1900s there was no record of Pateke being present on Great Barrier Island, and in 1868 Hutton, a highly regarded ornithologist, failed to record them in his extensive Great Barrier Island bird survey, but by 1987 there was 1500 Pateke on Great Barrier Island and 1200 on the east coast of Northland, but less than 20 on the Coromandel. Pateke were widespread on the Coromandel in the early 1900s but with the spread of predators less than 20 were surviving in the Port Charles area near the top of the Coromandel.

Thanks to the 2000 Audit the release of captive reared Pateke commenced on the Coromandel in 2003 and ended in 2007 with 250 Pateke released. This release was supported by the existing and extensive predator control programme in the Moehau Ranges in operation since 1999 and by 2013 there are several hundred Kiwi surviving in the ranges. An extensive predator control programme for Pateke at Port Charles and environs was launched in 2001, with a high level of survival of both released and wild teal.

And from 20 to 750 Pateke on the Coromendel is an incredible success story and clearly confirmed precisely what the TV Presenter stated in 1999 – “Provide brown teal with a predator free environment and they will live for 24-years”! The level of survival of released birds, their adaptability and their breeding success, coupled with major predator control programmes, no duck hunting and outstanding support from the local Port Charles community, including farmers, is an outstanding example of what can be achieved in a short space of time. Brown teal are now being observed in an increasing number in many areas of the Peninsula with one flock of 180 being counted in 2012 at Waikawau Bay.

istorically, a peninsula has proven to be readily defensible against predators and with ongoing predator control on the Coromandel Peninsula a population of over 2000 Pateke could be achieved.
Besides well organised and intensive predator control on the Coromandel the support of the local farming community and residents has been an intrinsically important part of the success, with a number of land owners creating quality Pateke habitat and the locals carrying out much of the predator control work.
In addition financial contributions from The Moehau Environmental Group, Banrock Station Wines of Adelaide, Isaac Wildlife Trust, DUNZ, DOC, Brown Teal Conservation Trust and, critically important to the whole programme - the Pateke captive breeders - all helped ensure the success of the Coromandel re-establishment programme.

There is still much to be done before Pateke are anywhere near being saved from extinction and a future for the species is assured. DUNZ can be justly proud of its achievements with Pateke.

Next issue of Flight - The Positives and negatives of Pateke recovery programme.