Lockdown Limbo

Everyone is probably sick of hearing about lockdowns, Covid and the uncertainty of it all, so we will skip that part and talk about the things that happen regardless of our current restrictions of gatherings and movement. Spring has sprung whether you wear a mask or not, the karos are in full bloom right now, and the bees are loving it. The tuis are out in force, exercising their vocal chords in preparation for another breeding season, kororā are coming and going, leaving perfect little footprints in the sand, the oystercatchers are having noisy koreros defending their territories, warding off any potential space stealers, the skylarks are singing their hearts out, the frogs are croaking in the wetlands and the sun is already kissing our faces with its warming rays.
Meanwhile we at OME try to plan ahead for the seasons to come, but aware that nothing can be taken for granted and even the best layed plans can’t guarantee success.

To plant or not to plant

For the second time our planned planting day has had to be postponed. In the autumn the planting site was submerged due to the creek exit being blocked, making planting impossible, and this time round lockdown has prevented us from getting this mahi done. We had planned it as a part of conservation week, which was obviously almost too perfect. Never fear, we are not about to give up. These plants will go in the ground sooner or later and hopefully many of you will be there to lend a hand. Thankfully the plants are in good hands in the meantime at Aotea Community Native Plant Nursery on Garden Road, who kindly added to our purchase by donating some more of their plants to our cause.

Tracking tunnel results

Our last monitoring round, completed in August, showed us some footprints we wouldn’t usually expect when rat monitoring. As well as the usual myriad of mice, a few rats and a good amount of lizards, this time we could add cat to our list of tracked species. These paws showed up in two of the wetland tracking tunnels. We may have to add some feral cat control to our repertoire.

Support from Auckland Council

Auckland Council has awarded OME a tools budget for another year. This means we can purchase things like the ink pads for our tracking tunnels, a few more traps to fill in a few gaps in our network, gloves because hygiene is important when dealing with dead animals, and a couple of game cameras to set up around nesting birds to keep an eye on what threats they face so we can better protect them.
We at OME are very grateful for the continued support from Auckland Council, which enables us to continue the work we do to protect and enhance our local ecosystems.

Photo competition

During the month of July, OME ran a photo competition to highlight the importance of reporting sightings of matuku to gather some information on where these special birds move and shake.
An acoustic survey has been carried out in the wetland areas of Aotea, trying to record them booming. This is the very distinctive sound the males make when calling for a suitor for mating. As well as matuku in both Whangapoua and Kaitoke, both fern bird and spotless crake also showed up on the recordings. Exciting to be able hear what we very rarely see.
These birds have the highest threat level conservation status of “nationally critical”, so restoring the wetlands like ours here in Medlands, where several sightings have been recorded, to provide a better habitat, seems crucial for the survival of this species.
The competition was won by Scott Mabey for this amazing image.

Upcoming events

OME have been planning some events to thrill you all over the summer months. Dates are obviously dependent on Delta behaving, so keep an eye on our facebook page for up to date info.

ASAP: Planting day in the wetland. We'd love your support if you are around.

ASAP: Weeding day in the reserve by Oruawharo Creek. And would be great to see you at this as well.

Labour weekend: Karen Walker (Great Barrier's local bird rescuer) has been invited to talk about her work. Koha and other donations would be appreciated, to help Karen cover some of the cost involved in running her service.

Early January: The annual Medlands Beach Sandcastle Competition

Waitangi weekend: Local kaumatua, Rodney Ngawaka will give a talk about the local pre-European history of Oruawharo.

We'd love to see you at all, or some, of these events.
We hope you can get out and hear the birds and smell the flowers.

Enjoy your spring.
Regards from the OME team.