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Welcome to our forth newsletter. Work over summer has continued apace with Stage 2 now all but finished to deliver ground based pest control systems over the entire 2600 ha project area.
 
Project Area wide infrastructure now in place.
The map above shows the project's 380 stoat tunnels set on a 400 x 200m grid with greater density along the coast line to afford protection for nesting sea birds. Interspersed between the stoat tunnels are 2300 bait stations which will be used to control rats and possums.

Servicing the grid is possible thanks to a new network of lightly cut and marked track lines connecting the stoat tunnel and bait station sites.

Leith Contractors Ltd did the heavy lifting in both Stages 1 and 2 to establish the track network. Tony Leith heads the company along with his son Vincent, whose 2 children, Caleb and Madison, also work in the team. That’s right, 3 generations of the Leith family working together for the betterment of conservation in the Fiordland backcountry
 
Photo: the Leith crew ready for work in all weather conditions.

Trust Chairman, Ron Anderson, hosted the Leiths in January when they returned to the Hollyford for stage 2. "They're good company and have a tremendous work ethic", Ron said. "We were pleased to have them back working on the project again". Ron was inspired to lend a hand and this photo shows the outcome of an ill-fated decision to take a short cut through swamp land while the Leiths worked on firmer ground nearby.

Measuring progress.
In September 2015 Te Anau based specialist, Iris Broekema, conducted a programme of native bird monitoring for the Trust to determine a base line across the project area. She  will repeat this process annually to help measure progress but already anecdotal reports from many of the Hollyford’s visitors suggest bird numbers have risen markedly throughout the initial 900 ha operational area shown as ‘Stage 1’ on the map above.

The Stage 1 area has 124 stoat tunnels which have now been checked and their traps reset 5 times for a combined catch of 17 stoats. Six were caught in the first round for a trap catch rate of 4.8%, just within the Trust’s target of maintaining the rate below 5%. Subsequent rounds have seen catch rates vary between 1.6% and 3.2%. It has been heartening to see targets being met to provide protection for native birds through their full summer breeding season.

Over the same summer season we have filled the Stage 1 bait stations twice, once in November and again in March. We used Pindone pellets for the initail fill to bring rat tracking rates down from 38% to 18% but by March they were back tracking at 38%. We wanted better results so experimented by lowering the baitstations and trialing 2 different toxins in separate blocks - Pindone in one block and Diphacinone in the other, both being first generation anticoagulants.

Monitoring after the second fill confirmed Pindone the clear winner with Diphacinone having little impact and tracking rates in the Pindone Block lowering to 5% with a single rat indication in 1 tracking tunnel near the block’s boundary. This Pindone result fell within the Trust's target range and was particularly pleasing given the trial was conducted at a time of year when the forest has abundant food sources available for rodents.

When filling the bait stations we also undertook possum control using Feratox, a Cyanide based toxin that kills extremely quickly once ingested.  Over the course of the 2 operations 52 possums were found dead next to bait stations – 47 in the first operation and only 5 in the second. These figures suggest that possums are well under control within the stage 1 area. We hope to confirm this with the results from specific possum monitoring that has recently been done.
 

Community engagement with the Hollyford Conservation Project.
At a recent meeting Trustees discussed how best to engage with stakeholders and build the sense of community around the Hollyford Conservation Project. With this in mind, the Trust has taken preliminary steps to formalise a volunteer programme for some of the work within the project area. This work requires a good level of backcountry experience and the fitness to be able to tramp over undulating terrain for 6-8 hours a day at a comfortable pace. We would love to hear from anyone who has these skills and is keen to be involved. Please get in touch at info@hollyfordconservationtrust.org.nz

Trustees also talked about how they might enhance the way the Trust engages with stakeholders. Initial suggestions included hardcopy newsletters and a Facebook page but Trustees seek further information  in order to make informed decisions. How do you wish to engage with the Trust and the project? If you have thoughts then please also get in touch at the above address.

As a further measure the Trust has created this crowd funding page to make it easier for people to donate to the cause: https://givealittle.co.nz/org/hollyforconservationproject Please be aware that every dollar donated goes directly towards protecting the Lower Hollyford’s native flora and fauna from the predation of introduced pest species.

The Hollyford Conservation Trust was established to protect and enhance native flora and fauna in harmony with cultural, social and recreational values at Martins Bay, Lower Hollyford Valley.
 

The Trust's board comprises Ron Anderson, chairman; Adam Fairmaid, deputy chairman; Peta Carey, secretary; and trustees Andrew Bowmar, Andrew Clegg, Bard Crawford, Kara Edwards, Simon Hall and Andy Lowe. For biographical details see www.hollyfordconservationtrust.org.nz


Our mailing address is:
info@hollyfordconservationtrust.org.nz

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