Another excellent AGM and Conference was held at Martinborough. Great venue, organisation and attendance. A big thank you toeveryone for making it a success. The field trip showcased Wairio wetland which enabled members to see where we have directed significant effort over recent years supported by numerous sponsors. At the Sunday morning session we received…
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Conservation week November 1-9 New Zealand is full of great places and hidden treasures. DOC knows because they manage over 1400 great places, each with its own special appeal. This Conservation Week DOC is making it fun and easy to get out and explore the great outdoors. They are hosting activities and events around the…
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DU’s new co-patron - Diane Pritt Ohakune farmer and long time DU member, Diane Pritt is the new co-patron of Ducks Unlimited New Zealand (DUNZ). She replaces Diana, Lady Isaac, who died in November 2012. The position, shared with Jim Campbell of Wairarapa, had been vacant while the DUNZ board decided on the best person…
DU directors in the news – for good reasons Two DU directors, John Dermer and Dan Steele made the news this year, both appearing in mainly rural papers, and both for very good reasons. Dan Steele - Conservation and tourism with farming Dan Steele is the main driving force behind Blue Duck Station, central North Island,…
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Pateke efforts pay off Dear Editor, After reading the article written by Neil Hayes on ‘A brief History of Ducks Unlimited Operation Pateke’ in the July 2014 issue of Flight, I feel there are a number of claims in his reference to pateke at Cape Kidnappers, which are inaccurate and need rectifying. I have…
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The milestone for Pateke this year is seeing the Northland flock count top the 2000 recovery plan of 750 birds. Dangerous as it is to make any assumptions, it would appear that the natural spread of wild birds on this part of the Northland coast is benefiting from the expanding network of loosely linked…
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Breeding Results 2013-2014 What a great year we have had with 33 ducklings reared and released over the last two weeks in March. This is a new record. Peacocks, two pairs lead the charge with having three clutch’s each and producing 23 and then Mt Bruce’s pair produced six from two clutch’s and Orana…
To the uninitiated, the name Ducks Unlimited (DUNZ) conjures up images of guns, and birds falling from the sky. However, DUNZ is anything but one that focuses on duck shooting. It is, in fact, New Zealand’s leading wetlands and waterfowl conservation group. DU works to save our wetlands through protection, funding, technical aid and education…
John and Diny Dermer were this year named as the North Island’s top farm foresters. They both love trees, and their farm at Cheltenham near Feilding reflects the attention that has been put into enhancing the landscape with a wide variety of native and exotic trees. Selected as top forester in the North Island,…
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In early August Steve Playle completed the trapping maintenance down at the wetlands for the month. It was the first servicing of equipment for the new financial year. Result were 7 ferrets, 2 weasels, 6 rats, 3 hedgehogs, 3 harrier hawks and 2 magpies. “We have cracked 50 ferrets since trapping commenced last July.…
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A small band of us managed to get a further 790 plants in the ground at Stages 1 and 4. This brought the total for the year to about 2500. The water was quite high at Stage 4 so there are still some spots to be planted. We still have 400 suitable plants at Norfolk…
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Winter shorebird survey results at Lake Wairarapa Steve Playle, Hugh Robertson and Nikki McArthur took advantage of excellent weather conditions on June 20 to carry out a winter shorebird census at Lake Wairarapa. The water level was relatively high (10.3 metres above datum), so most of the mudflats were under water and in turn that influenced some of the species counts.…
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To save Pateke Knowledge, care and endurance Positive aspects of the recovery programme The release of captive reared Pateke by Ducks Unlimited (NZ) in the Northland area between 1980-1992 had a number of positive outcomes, particularly at the 350-hectare government owned Mimiwhangata Farm Park during a brief period when predator control was being carried out. Pre-release aviaries…
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Pateke success at Tawharanui Tāwharanui Open Sanctuary reintroduced pateke between 2008 and 2010, with 148 captive reared ducklings released in total. An earlier release in the 90s failed due to inadequate predator control, an unfortunately common occurrence for pre 2000 pateke releases. More recent releases within the predator free open sanctuary have successfully established a population of…
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Volunteers have been working on the Maori Bay track at Tawharanui. Many Flight readers would possibly be going fishing or bird watching on this southern coastline of the Tokata Peninsular so they might like to see what the track looks like now! Loose metal will be added once the drier weather occurs. Roger Williams has…
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By DOC Ranger Cody Thyne As a ranger based in Twizel the main part of my job is supporting the Kakī Recovery Programme. Kakī/black stilts are one of New Zealand’s rarest birds and the mission of the Kakī Recovery Programme is to increase their population in the wild and ensure this special bird is not…
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A state of the art walk through aviary is one step closer for Pukaha after receiving a grant of $250,000 from Trust House Foundation. This grant has kick started fundraising for the $1.1 million project designed to provide visitors to Pukaha with an exciting experience – allowing them to get closer to native bird life…
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Whio Forever wins green ribbon award The Whio Forever recovery programme won the Ministry for the Environment Green Ribbon Award this year for protecting our biodiversity. The Awards recognise outstanding contributions of individuals, organisations, businesses and communities to protecting and enhancing New Zealand’s environment. The National Whio Recovery Programme is a partnership between Genesis Energy, the Department of…
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