A visit from Banks Peninsula

This week, Predator Free Dunedin hosted the team from Pest Free Banks Peninsula — another landscape scale predator control programme being funded by Predator Free 2050 Limited.

The teams from Predator Free Dunedin and Pest Free Banks Peninsula at Orokonui Ecosanctuary.

It was an opportunity to share knowledge between to the two projects, especially since both groups are working to eradicate possums in coastal environments. There were plenty of similarities between the two operating areas — a mixture of urban and rural communities, as well as different habitats such as pasture, native forest, and sea cliffs.

The first day was spent on the Otago Peninsula with the team from Otago Peninsula Biodiversity Group. At their Biodiversity Hub in Portobello, we heard from Micaela Kirby-Crowe about efforts to eradicate possums on the Peninsula by 2023.

Their eradication plan uses a range of innovative tools, including a grid of self-resetting AT220 traps, raised leg holds and live-capture cage traps. A possum aversion fence developed by trustee Brendan Cross, and recently trialled by Zero Invasive Predators (ZIP), runs along the neck of the peninsula which reduces the movement of animals from the city. They are also using more traditional methods such as shooting, dogs, and getting residents in coastal communities to set traps in their backyards. Overall, the method of knocking possums down to low numbers, followed by a lean grid of traps, and mop up operations seem to be working well.

Micaela Kirby-Crowe showcases the work being done on Otago Peninsula at the Biodiversity Hub.

Both teams headed out into the field to check out a Celium Hub which is connected to the ZIP raised leg hold traps and live capture cage traps. This means the operations team can work smarter as they receive an email notification if a trap is triggered and can respond quickly to dispatch a possum.

On the second day, we were hosted by the Halo Project for our third quarterly catchup, a dive into the operations of our delivery partners at Orokonui Ecosanctuary. It was great to be able to include Pest Free Banks Peninsula who also gave us a presentation on their operations and plans. Their structure is very similar to that of Predator Free Dunedin as it is a collaboration of multiple community groups who are working together to protect biodiversity through predator control. Their goal is to eradicate possums from Banks Peninsula, alongside a programme to supress mustelids (stoats, ferrets and weasels) and feral cats that pose a huge threat to the unique threatened species living in their area.

We also heard from  City Sanctuary on their efforts to get Dunedin’s urban community trapping in backyards and reserves. This included a focus on community engagement and how they support the 32,000 properties in their operational area to get involved. We also heard about some of their learnings from using Goodnature A24 self-resetting rat and stoat traps in Dunedin’s main student area — North Dunedin.

Kate Tanner (left) and Catherine Hosted (right) share an update from City Sanctuary.

The Halo Project shared their experience using the AT220 possum and rat traps to create a succession plan from OSPRI’s TBfree operations in the area. They have put a huge amount of work into trialling these traps to ensure they are as effective as possible, whilst reducing the risk of non-target by-catch. This included a detailed overview of how they have undertaken a multi-phased trial, working collaboratively with Orokonui Ecosanctuary, the University of Otago and the Department of Conservation. And more recently how they have worked closely with NZ Autotraps on the firmware for the daylight lockout function.

An AT220 possum and rat trap.

We also heard from Nathan McNally and Dan Tompkins from Predator Free 2050 Limited. Nathan gave an excellent overview and update on the other landscape scale  projects happening across New Zealand. Dan shared some of the innovative new technology being funded to help achieve the goal of a Predator Free New Zealand by 2050. It was a great opportunity for people to ask questions and learn more about some of the new tools that are being developed.

Nathan McNally from Predator Free 2050 Limited.

A highlight of this visit was exploring Orokonui Ecosanctuary, which is at the centre of the Halo Project’s area. We were delighted to see South Island robin (kakaruwai), South Island kākā, tūī and bellbirds. A reminder of what could be seen across the South Island in years to come as we work towards the vision for a Predator Free New Zealand.

The team enjoys a walk through Orokonui Ecosanctuary.

We also visited Heyward Point where we checked out some of the Halo Projects AT220 network and DOC200 traps in the field. It was a great opportunity to see how the new mobile application works with the AT220 and how the Halo Project will be installing these traps in forestry blocks where they can’t be attached to trees due to the risks when the trees are harvested and processed.

On day three, the team from Banks Peninsula were split across the three delivery partners and able to get into the field. Some did urban trap installs with City Sanctuary, others helped to install a new Celium mini hub on the Peninsula, and got up onto Mihiwaka to service a network of A24 traps with the Halo Project.

Overall, it was an exciting few days of sharing, collaboration and learning to help enable the Predator Free New Zealand goal. Collaboration is key to the success of our work, so it’s awesome to catch up with another project funded by Predator Free 2050 Limited. We learned a lot and hopefully the Banks Peninsula team did too!