From the Chief Executive Officer
by Phil Lyons
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Kia ora koutou,
It would be fair to say that 2020 has been challenging. With the holiday period just around the corner, I am sure you will all be looking forward to: quality time with whānau; spending a little time reflecting on the year that has been and; looking forward to the new year, and the opportunities it will bring.
2021 provides further opportunities for Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari to make significant impacts in our communities. Of particular note will be the: Titipounamu (Rifleman) translocation; continuation of the kākāpō project; construction of our new Education Centre; role out of our new health and wellness programmes; and the deployment of our new Biosecurity Risk and Pathway Management Plan.
So, as the year draws to a close, I would like to thank you all on behalf of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, for your amazing support throughout 2020. Despite everything COVID has thrown at SMM, this has been another year of significant outcomes, delivered by the determination, skill and dedication of our team of volunteers, contractors, partners and staff.
Ngā mihi
Phil
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Takahē update, November
By Janelle Ward, Species Coordinator
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 This month the final lizard monitoring stations were set up at Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, with 80 permanent survey stations installed in two main blocks within the 63ha mouse-free Southern Enclosure. Each station consists of two stacked Artificial Cover Objects (ACO’s), a tracking tunnel and a tree cover. The tracking tunnels are used to discover lizard foot prints at the time of the survey, by luring them to walk over tracking cards; whilst the ground covers provide shelter for skinks and the tree covers provide shelter for geckos.
This was a fantastic team effort with a new team of lizard survey volunteers. Lizard expert Moniqua Nelson-Tunley from Waikato Regional Council ran a training session for the volunteers, covering catching and handling skinks and geckos, photographing, measuring and species identification. All these volunteers subsequently turned up to assist in setting up the stations over the past couple of months which are 50 metres apart and use existing pest monitoring lines.
It’s important not to disturb these stations so if you do see them when visiting, please don’t let your curiosity spoil the survey by lifting or disturbing any of these stations. The plan is to conduct surveys twice a year, with the first due in the next month or so. As the stations are all new, it may be some time before they come into good use by local lizards, but we look forward to sharing the results with you of the first and subsequent surveys.
Photo: Species Coordinator Janelle Ward setting up lizard monitoring plots in the Southern Enclosure.
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Where do our kiwi chicks wander to?
By Katrina Douglas-Withers
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Although the kiwi is our national icon, there is much about them we don’t know. Researchers are slowly filling in the gaps, determining where kiwi of all species go from day to day, why they disperse from their natal grounds, and what habitats they prefer. Here at Maungatautari we are interested in investigating how fast our chicks grow to the ‘safe’ 1000g. At this weight they can hold their own against predators in the wild. As we start to fill up the sanctuary with the aim to have 600 founding birds on the mountain, it is important to understand how well they are growing to ensure their health and productivity in the future. As part of this our kiwi ranger, Craig Montgomerie, is placing transmitters on a selection of the chicks being released and conducting health checks every four weeks. However this is no mean feat. The range on a chick transmitter is as small as 200 metres and this is affected by dense vegetation and steep slopes… things we have no shortage of here on the Maunga.
As part of a Master of Wildlife Management I have moved up from Dunedin for the summer to investigate what affects the topography of the sanctuary has on the ability to receive a signal. I will hopefully make Craig’s life a little easier by determining which spots are most likely to receive a range of signals once the chicks have started to wander off. Essentially, the main part of my research will involve doing a backwards treasure hunt: hiding transmitters in likely areas then working my way out until I can’t find a signal anymore.
In addition to this I’ll be buzzing around the visitors centre helping out and getting involved in as many of the amazing opportunities here as I can. Hopefully my research will streamline the process of tracking kiwi, making us more efficient and able to track even more chicks next summer.
Photo: Katrina with Craig about to release a kiwi chick on the maunga.
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What's been happening and what's next?
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Saturday night on the Maunga
Extra dates have been added to Saturday Night on the Maunga. We are offering this unique way to see the maunga on:
- 19 December 2020
- 16 January 2021
- 30 January 2021
- 13 February 2021
- 27 February 2021
Enjoy the magic of the maunga in a new light with these very special night tours. There are glow worms to see, kiwi and morepork to hear. You can book now for these tours just click here.
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Contribute and become an Inspired Kaitiaki member today!
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Stuff wrote an excellent article summing up Sanctuary Mountain's previous year and the year ahead. We are focusing on the New Zealanders enjoying the maunga for the next while and encourage everyone to come visit and contribute how you can.
Take a look at the full article here.
Contributing to the restoration of Maungatautari could mean taking up one of the many volunteering roles on the maunga, donating or becoming an Inspired Kaitiaki member. Every contribution to Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari goes back to the project. After this most challenging year, we need your contribution more than ever.
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Christmas vouchers for friends and family
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Another way to contribute this year and to help us share the mauri and the mana of the maunga is to buy a gift voucher for your friends and family this Christmas.
All of our products offer a gift voucher that you can give this Christmas. Go to the Visit Us page on our website or email Jessica Meade at marketing@maungatrust.org for more information.
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Ngā mihi maioha
(with thanks and appreciation)
The team at Sanctuary Mountain® Maungatautari
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Copyright © 2018 Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, All rights reserved.
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