Il Giro de Pembrokeshire bike ride returns westerntelegraph.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from westerntelegraph.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research ecologist Norman Mason said reversing the almost total loss of kahikatea forests from the flood plains of the Piako may seem like a daunting prospect, but the community is one step closer to protecting its forests for future generations. The planted area connects a council-owned scenic reserve and a privately owned QEII National Trust conservation covenant. The freshly planted seedlings will help improve connections between these two fragments and increase resistance to weeds and weather extremes.
supplied
More than 80 volunteers showed up for planting day in Waharoa. “This is a great example of what can be achieved when landowners, the community, government agencies and conservation charities work together,” Mason said.
There are known populations of long-tail and short-tail bats throughout Waipā and Waikato districts. “This raises the question of what bat monitoring should be undertaken prior to commencing work,” the report by community services manager Sally Sheedy said. “Due to the large flight distance of the pekapeka (bat), the whole Waipā district could be considered to have areas that host these species.” It could mean “larger financial and time related costs” for bat monitoring. To monitor bats, staff needed to be deemed a “Class C Supervising Bat Ecologist” by the Department of Conservation. Waipā is reviewing what training was required for staff or its tree maintenance contractor to perform monitoring. A consultant ecologist is used at the moment.
If you go looking for threatened species, people need to be ready to protect them. Otherwise, you’re just a tourist, Mason said. He decided to set up the event – in conjunction with the Piako Catchment Forum and the sponsorship of Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research – after more people became interested in his work.
Zero Invasive Predators
The $45m Predator Free South Westland project is a step towards New Zealand becoming predator free by 2050. The main issues of the day – maintenance of big old trees in the landscape and predator control. “Big old trees are vital for our bats as roosting sites and predator control is important because pests like possums and rats kill bats in their roosts or push bats out of potential roosting sites.”