News from Friends of Te Wairoa

Kia ora to all Friends of the Wairoa River Catchment…

Yes, school holidays again and time for another email to remind you to throw some bait in those stations, service and re-set the traps, and shift any around that haven’t seen much action lately. There are still stoats and ferrets around, and everyone is hungry. It’s a great time to entice them into traps and lure them into bait stations, before food becomes abundant again in the form of fruit and baby birds…

In this newsletter:

  • Reviewing recent events
  • Community nursery status
  • Exciting upcoming events
  • Pest control stats

 

Recent events

Thank you for coming out to see us!

In June, we set up shop with our predator control supplies in the heart of Clevedon to catch you as you picked up kids from school and made your way home from work. It was a nippy wind, but plenty of you came out to see us. We were a little run off our feet, but so happy to see everyone. New properties that have joined the trapping team include ones on McNicol Road, McGregor Road, North Road and even the new Mark Williams Place! Through trapping, we are all holding hands and suppressing the tide of rats, possums and other predators that threaten to damage our homes, injure our pets and kill our native wildlife.

A few days later, together with Auckland Council’s Healthy Waters department, we had planned to host a workshop on practical insights into the natural behaviours of waterways and effective strategies for enhancing flood resilience, retaining land, reducing sediment loss, and preserving water quality.

But we need to make an apology. This workshop was cancelled as we thought there was low interest, due to the low registration numbers (only 9 people registered via the email provided). You proved us wrong by showing up in force… to a locked building! We are working on a new date for the workshop, as clearly, we misjudged the demand. If you are interested in finding out more when a new date is set, please flick us an email and we’ll start to make a list. info@tewairoa.org.nz

 

Community Nursery

Our community nursery is now sold out of plants of a reasonable size for this planting season, but we have word that local nurseries are still bursting at the seams waiting to supply you at similar prices. Thank you for your support, we hope to see you again soon!

If you would like help us prepare for next year and contribute by donating seeds or seedlings, or by volunteering in the nursery, we’d love to hear from you! Volunteer sessions of a couple of hours are held once a month on a Wednesday morning, all are welcome.

 

Exciting upcoming events:

14th August, 11th September & 9th October: Community Nursery volunteer days, 8.30am – 10.30am, on the right up the driveway next to Art Industry on the Clevedon main street.

21st August: Friends of Te Wairoa AGM, 6pm onwards at the Hūnua Hall, with guest speaker Lenny van Heugten talking about the recovery of the Kōkako population in the Hūnua Ranges, and the community’s role in contributing to their success.

5th October: Riparian restoration and pest plant control workshop.

This is an exciting new, free workshop combining the riparian workshop given by Tony Thompson in the past, with some practical pest plant control advice delivered by our friend and expert, Kelly Wootton, from Auckland Council. The riparian restoration portion will discuss why such restoration work is necessary, and the practical aspects of how to get going and what to think about. Pest plant control will cover some of the main pest plants in our area, with a focus on crack willows, but if you have some pest plants in particular you would like to see highlighted please let us know in advance. Spaces will be strictly limited due to venue size, at Lynda Hallinan’s Sweetgum Cottage, so please ensure you secure your space by emailing us at info@tewairoa.org.nz.

 

Pest control stats for Friends of Te Wairoa

Generally speaking, the feedback from around the catchment is that possum numbers are down. This is because possums only have 1-2 babies per year, so once their numbers are knocked down, it’s relatively easy to maintain low numbers.

We’re also hearing of a surge in rat activity. Keep up the baiting and trapping – 2 rats can become over 1,000 in a year if left unchecked, so every rat you catch is important and makes a difference, even if it doesn’t feel that way.

Thank you to everyone who has responded to our emails for catch data. This gives us a good sense of where we are at, and we love hearing your stories, and struggles, so that we can address these. If you haven’t yet responded, please do so and check your junk mail for the email.

Together, we are working towards restoring the mauri of the awa. We’d like to thank you all for your ongoing support of the mahi we do. It’s what keeps that ball rolling forward.

 

Happy trapping and planting,

Lenny van Heugten
Communications and Predator Control Co-ordinator
Friends of Te Wairoa
info@tewairoa.org.nz