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News from Project Janszoon - March 2015

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Issue 7 includes: Kaka likely to join kakariki; New operations manager; Felling of coastal pines underway; Wasp trial results; What ZIP is up to; the origins of Onatahuti and more……
Kaka release looking likely for spring      
 
It is looking positive for a spring release of kaka into the top of the Park.
 
The news is exciting after years of discussion with conservation geneticists about where Project Janszoon should source kaka from. 
 
Project Janszoon ornithologist Pete Gaze says DOC has now indicated there is a path forward with a likelihood captive raised birds bred in the South Island will be available for release.
 
“We now need to submit a translocation plan to DOC for formal approval but this is an exciting step forward.  It looks like we should be able to release a good number of birds each year for five years which will be enough to make a real difference,” he says.
 
There are historic accounts of large numbers of kaka in the Park.  While a few of the large forest-dwelling parrots are still present in the higher parts, it is thought they are likely to all be males and in such low numbers that they need help to re-establish a population. 

Foreshore pines for the chop             

 
Work has started to remove wilding pines from coastal areas of the Park.  This new programme will build on the wilding pine eradication work already undertaken by the Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust.
 
Over the last three years the Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust has run a half million dollar project controlling tens of thousands of wilding pines by injecting them with herbicide.  However the project excluded trees close to the foreshore as these trees need to be felled by professional arborists to protect public safety.
 
Project Janszoon Operations Manager Andrew Macalister says work has now started to fell the coastal pines left after the original project.  The work is being funded from the Abel Tasman Foreshore Scenic Reserve Fund, which is jointly managed by DOC and the Tasman District Council.
 
“We have completed felling wilding pines at Shag Harbour and Wallaby Creek and the operation will be extended to Torrent Bay during winter,” he says.
 
This method does allow new pines to generate as cutting down a tree creates a light gap in the forest giving the pine seeds an opportunity to grow.  To combat this Project Janszoon has also committed funding for maintenance control from spring.
 
Virtual visitor centre expanded
 
The virtual visitor centre, which is available free on your smart phone, has been extended to include six new stops from Totaranui to Wainui Bay.  Search for Abel Tasman at your app store and take a look.
Watch this short video about the latest kakariki release
Tree planting at Anzac weekend

Forest & Bird volunteers are doing some planting at Hadfield Clearing on Anzac weekend as part of the kahikatea restoration project.  If you are interested in helping (you don't have to be a F & B member) contact julie@vodafone.co.nz.
 
New Project Janszoon operations manager                         
Andrew Macalister has been appointed Project Janszoon’s Operations Manager with responsibility for the “secure” aspects of the project.
 
These include weed and pest control which are the key factors contributing to ecological decline in the Abel Tasman National Park.
 
Many of you will know Andrew from his work managing the Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust’s wilding pine and weed control projects.    He has been involved in conservation for the past 18 years, with a particular focus on programme management.
 
Andrew has been involved in Project Janszoon since its inception as part of the external advisory group.  This new role is a continuation of a lifelong involvement with the Park as his family visited the Abel Tasman by yacht every summer.
 
“I have wonderful childhood memories of the Park and this is a great opportunity to be able to ensure my kids will experience the area in an even better condition than I did.  So many people are passionate about the Park and ultimately it’s about us all working together on something we all care greatly about,” he says.
ZIPPING the mainland                                                          
Zero Invasive Predators (ZIP) Ltd has been established as a research and development company to pioneer a new approach to predator management.  ZIP’s aim is to completely remove rats, stoats and possums from large areas of the mainland utilising new and existing predator control technologies.  

Al Bramley is ZIP’s CEO and we asked him to tell us about ZIP’s  development site and how Project Janszoon is helping in the fight against invasive predators.
Where is ZIP’s development site?

Our field laboratory is a 440 hectare site on the Bottle Rock Peninsula in the Marlborough Sounds (pictured above), near the start of the Queen Charlotte track.  We are establishing a rat and possum  free zone on the small peninsula and then will try and defend it from reinvasion without using a predator fence. 

How does it work?

Initially we need to remove all the invasive predators and to do this we are using fairly standard tools like traps and toxins.   Once the predators are removed we will use a defence barrier system to stop reinvasion.  It involves a series of six defence lines spaced 100m apart.  Each defence line has multiple tools every 10m, which is a lot more intensive than a typical trap line, where traps are usually spaced 100m by 100m for rats.

How close are you to removing all the predators?

We think we are down to the last half dozen possums and 50 odd rats.  As we get down to really small rat numbers we will use a new lure developed by the Goodnature team.  It smells of rat and works because rats get lonely and should be attracted by the lure.  We estimate in two to three months we will have got rid of every rat and possum.  Then the hard work begins.

What happens when you get rid of all the predators?

Then we begin to improve the defence barrier system and our detection system in the protected zone. The barrier system is already in place and somewhat surprisingly seems to be working quite well, but this is unchartered territory and we need to understand what's working and refine it.  ZIP has learnt a lot already but as we develop the barrier we expect it to be breached. 

What innovative tools are you using?

We have 600 traps that are linked together electronically so there is live reporting into a satellite monitoring system.  That means we know when a trap has caught or killed a predator and we can respond quickly.  As we are using some live traps that real time monitoring is essential.

How is Project Janszoon helping?

We have already been testing new lures on Project Janszoon’s trap network in the Abel Tasman National Park and at least one lure showed promising results.  We work closely with the Project Janszoon team and we may end up testing other new technologies and methodologies in the Park.

Where to from here?

ZIP plans to develop the system at Bottle Rock Peninsula for the next three to five years.  With that learning we will then be able to take our work to the next order of magnitude.

Are there other ideas you are looking at? 

We are already looking at things like novel traps or toxins, long-life lures, and automated detection.   We also get people coming to us with new proposals and some of those are promising.  ZIP intends to work alongside researchers and engineers to develop a complete set of tools to tackle invasive predators.
 
ZIP is a partnership between the NEXT Foundation (whose funders also support Project Janszoon), DOC, the dairy industry and philanthropists Gareth Morgan and Sam Morgan.  For more information on ZIP click here.

Gannets may be landing at Separation Point                       

 
There have been two reports in the last few months from visitors who believe they have seen gannets landing at Separation Point.
 
We are trying to establish a gannet colony on the Point by enticing the birds using decoys and playing bird calls.  The method has been used successfully in other parts of New Zealand and we are hoping it will help encourage birds from Farewell Spit which is vulnerable to storm erosion and pig predation.
 
Ornithologist Pete Gaze says the reports from the public are tantalising and bode well for next season when we will see if some breed.  If you do observe gannets at this site, or have any questions, please contact Project Janszoon. Pictured below are Pete Gaze, Barrie Brown, Philip Simpson and Gillan Wratt (trustees) and Devon McLean (PJ director) visiting the site in March. 
 

Falls River wasps take a hammering 

 
Project Janszoon has undertaken a second year of trials to take the sting out of wasps in the national park.
 
In February Project Janszoon funded a wasp control programme over 736ha in the Falls River area.  It was part of a wider DOC pilot that was also carried out in sites at Nelson Lakes, Bottle Rock Peninsula in the Marlborough Sounds, Pelorus Bridge and Craigieburn at Arthurs Pass.
 
DOC reports that monitoring indicates that the wasp control has been successful in achieving the target of killing at least 90% of the wasps in the control area. 
 
German and common wasps are an increasing problem, with reports of numbers being particularly high in the Park this year.  They have no natural predators and compete with our native birds, insects and honey bees for food. They also pose a significant threat to human health and outdoor recreation users.
 
The trial used protein bait containing the commonly used insecticide fipronil which has been approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
 
DOC will now assess the results to decide how best to control wasps in the Park in the future.
 
Students step up as environmental ambassadors                

Students on Project Janszoon’s newly formed Student Advisory Board are already providing input to DOC about how to encourage young people to have more meaningful experiences in our national parks.
 
The student led advisory board was formed in February and is part of Project Janszoon and DOC’s Adopt a Section programme.  It will see four students each from partner schools Motueka High School, Golden Bay High School and Motupipi Primary School meet regularly and step into leadership roles for the programme.

The students and teacher representatives first met at a two-day retreat at Onetahuti in late February and have met again in March where Project Janszoon’s education advisor Wendy Reeve says they were quickly down to business.
 
“The students were really excited to be back together and talked about the kinds of things they have done since the retreat and how they will run their meetings in the future.  We are also committed to developing these students as young leaders, actively teaching them skills such as teamwork, how to listen and to be heard,” says Wendy.


A guest from one of DOC's regional teams also attended the meeting to get advice from the students about what activities and messages would encourage young people to connect more with our national parks and develop an appreciation for what makes them special.

Motueka High School Year 13 student Halina Horn is on the advisory board.  “We are the next generation of conservationists and you do need to get younger people involved so there are people to take over,” she says.

Board members will be the ambassadors for the Adopt a Section programme, both regionally and nationally.  The Adopt a Section programme uses the restoration of the Abel Tasman National Park as an opportunity to engage students in the on-going conservation and restoration activities in the Park.

For more information about the programme check out the new education portal 
The Student Advisory Board, from left to right.  Jessie Childs, Chris Oakden, Clarissa Barham, Dallas Bradley, Halina Horn, Pippa Struck, Wendy Reeve, Finn Wilson-Howarth, Yerren van Sint Annaland, Tyler Goodall, Nari Casley, Heidi James, Rebecca Martin, Alex Oakden, Jack Balck, Maria Deutsch, Helen Young & Mark MacKenzie
Noisy kakariki a welcome sound       
 
If you are visiting the upper reaches of the Park you have every chance of hearing the sounds of chattering kakariki after a second release of the yellow-crowned parakeet.
 
Project Janszoon aviculturist Rosemary Vander Lee, with help from DOC and Motupipi School students, released ten kakariki from the Wainui Aviary in mid March. 
 
She returned to the aviary a week after the release and says there were three kakariki nearby that were making use of the aviary feeder. “People that are visiting the area say they are hearing kakariki more than ever before, especially on the ridges, so it is likely they are also looking for fruiting berries up there,” she says.
 
It's all in a name - Onetahuti                                                 
 
As part of his research into place names in the Park, Project Janszoon Trustee and author Dr Philip Simpson takes a look at the origins of Onetahuti.
 
Onetahuti is one of the most impressive places in the Park with its lovely beach and impressive wetland and footbridge.
 
The name has been analysed by Peart to mean ‘to run hurriedly (tahuti) along the beach (one)”.  However, it seems much more likely to be a composite of one-tahu-ti. Tahu means to burn or cook, and ti is, of course, the cabbage tree. One of the potential meanings is that cabbage trees were burnt on the beach as signals or as food.  However, the problem is that there are no cabbage trees (ti kouka) present anywhere in the eastern part of the Park. Once again the infertile soil prevents this species from establishing and only the bush cabbage tree, ti ngahere, is present, although never in particularly large numbers. It would take some effort to collect enough ti ngahere leaves for a large fire or enough underground rhizomes as a sustained food item. However, the high flammability of ti leaves does suggest the possibility of collecting, drying and storing them for instant fire signals.
 
It is possible that one or a few cabbage trees were once present, either naturally or planted as a marker as they are in many places in New Zealand. Maori used cabbage trees to mark fishing grounds, river crossings, burial sites and tribal boundaries. In fact the only cabbage tree along the Tasman Coast grows at Abel Head, probably a former pa site and burial ground: it is clearly a marker. It is potentially possible, given the rarity of cabbage trees in the region that the actual name is One-tahi-ti, a place with only one or a few cabbage trees, and therefore a notably distinct place easily recognized from offshore. In fact the dune at Onetahuti is distinctive in growing rimu, an uncommon sand plant.
 
Order new Project Janszoon brochures or posters and rack cards about the virtual visitor centre here
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