Te Hoirere - Maud Island - Conservation Volunteering


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Published: July 27th 2009
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Maud Island

0 - The pensula - where we planted our trees1 - The Pier / home bay2 - The summit - climbed to the top on day 2 to do some trap lines!3 - Southwood Ridge - more trap lines!4 - Te Pakahe5 - The Fort6 - The lodge (home!)

I spent a wonderful week on a refuge island in the Marlborough Sounds assisting DOC in their valuable work in saving endangered spices. This was a week like no other. Once we got through the strict quarantine procedures on the mainland to make sure we weren't harboring any nasties who might wreak havoc on the protected island we were welcomed ashore with freshly baked gingerbread men, with our bright yellow fish bins of essentials!

Firstly we were isolated. There were no more than 12 people on the relatively small island (see map for location) for the whole week that i was there, 2 Irish, 2 American (team international), 3 kiwi and one German (the island family)...with a few others visiting. Then there were the tens of thousands of frogs (Maud Island frogs - found no where else in the world!), about 6 Takahe (a large flightless bird that is endangered), all forms of insects (mainly the large grasshopper type creature known as Weta) and lots of small blue adorable penguins! So really, we weren't isolated...it was quite a busy place! The other bird live, including Tui, fantail, wood pigeon, and some Weka hiding in the bushes ensured there was a constant overwhelming chorus of bird song which went on all day - magical - and it made the island sound like Jurassic Park at times!

"Team international" consisted of two Irish (myself and Melanie from Queenstown but originally a Dub) and two Americans (Diana and Travis, from California - studying in Christchurch). We would be saving the world (or at least helping to keep an eye on some endangered birds) for a week in this beautiful remote place. One of our main activities including checking trap lines - the island is kept predator (mice, rats, stoat etc) free by 100's of traps positioned around the perimeter of the island to catch any brave (and stupid) predators who swim the 900m from the nearest mainland point. We were assigned to different trap lines and we would check each trap to see if anything had been caught (thankfully we didn't come across anything, it's been quite a few years since any invasions!) and replace the bait (egg) that's used to lure in the unsuspecting rodents. This often involved venturing out to the further most points of the island, climbing up steep ridges and admiring the amazing views along the way. There were various forms of traps, some designed not to catch the animals at all, but to see if they are on the island. There are sand traps, or foot traps, which are designed to get a food print of anything which might be interested in eating an egg. This allowed us to learn a little about the foot prints of various birds on the island from penguin to takahe or weka.

When checking the trap lines we also got the opportunity to electronically track the takahe. Each "tak" is fitted with a little backpack which sends out a signal which can be picked up by a tracking device. As we wandered around checking the traps we set up the portable telonic devices and beeped for the birds. We would tune in to each birds individual channel and rotate the aerial in various directions to see if we could pick up a signal. The birds, which are usually in pairs usually stick to one area of the island. This tracking is done regularly around breeding season to locate the takahe nests. The nests are carefully watched and the eggs are checked to see if their fertile and how many chicks they might have. Conservation is serious business over here!

When we weren't checking the trap lines and hauling dozens of rotten eggs around the steep slopes of the island we could be found planting trees. We were in charge of getting dozens of small Nigho (not sure of the spelling) seedlings into the ground. These would act as shelter for returning sea birds, under which they could build their burrows and the trees would also help hold moisture in the ground. Tree planting is tough work! Firstly we had to haul the seedlings over 2km along steep slippy terrain out to the end of the peninsula to the planting location. Luckily the peninsula caught the evening sun and we were happy to be out there breaking ground. We work well in teams, one fighting through the thick grass and opening up the soil with a hoe and the other carefully planting the delicate little seedling into the dry ground. Fingers crossed our little babys will grown big and strong! I hope my blistered hands were not worked in vain!

When we weren't digging or carrying eggs we would usually be eating! I have to admit, after spending 4 days in the huts on the Abel Tasmin track, i was expecting some basic form of accommodation and food on the island. We were all very pleasantly surprised. We had a cozy warm fully equipped lodge with an excellent fully stocked kitchen and a wide selection of educational videos! In the evenings we would work together on preparing a feast of some sort including dessert. I know i forgot what it was like to be hungry over my time on the island! We ate like kings with ample red wine thrown in for good measure! We dived into the varied video collection, exploring the educational aspects of cringe worthy Irish films, local DOC productions on other endangered species, and films illustrating aboriginal life in Australia.

One evening when we had exhausted our reserves through tree planting I decided to take out one of the sea kayaks for a gentle (short) paddle in one of the sheltered bays. The water was cold, but crystal clear and the views through the sounds in the last of the evening sun was magical. Paddling alone wasn't so scary after all!

Our first evening on the island we were exposed to the nocturnal inhabitants. We were taken on a guided walk around the paddocks and into the forest. We came across the Maud island frog and learned about why NZ frogs are unlike other frogs. They don't have webbed feet, don't live in the water, have no ear drums and don't croke and they give birth to live little frog-letts (no tadpole stage!). In the dark damp forest we were treated to numerous treats. The glow worms were out in force and we turned out or torches and followed a cleverly placed rope along the path and marveled and the star like formations of hungry worms. When the worm in hungry the acid in it's stomach causes it to glow and this attracts flys and other insects into the long string like "fishing rods" which are strung out by the worms to catch their dinner. Another nocturnal island inhabitant we met on numerous occasions was the Weta. There are lots of different varieties of Weta, but were privileged to see the tree weta and giant weta. They resemble a HUGE grass hopper which long legs and antenna. They female tree weta have a long spike at the back which they use to plant their eggs in the trees. The males have pincers and give a nasty bite I hear! A cleverly placed hallowed out tree with a clear plastic panel inside allowed us to view the tree weta in their native environment. We also had a close call with one who was living inside some fire wood we were splitting...but it survived the ordeal in one piece!

Another benefit of being so far from the rest of civilization was the lack of light pollution. They stars visible from the island were astounding. After my nights on the Abel Tasman i decided to pick up a guide to the southern stars in Moteuka. I pulled it out on one of the starry cloudless nights and tried to identify a few of the constellations. The milky way was amazingly clear along with the southern cross (the souths version of the plough essentially) and the magellanic clouds. It was a real treat!

Our hosts on the island were Richard, Leigh and their two children Liam (4) and Mohina (6). The whole family were so refreshing to be around! They are full of information about the island inhabitants, along with strange and wacky stories about mating habits and overly friendly hand reared birds! The children are constantly involved in all the conservation work and research that goes on on the island and are very knowledgeable about the species and excellent at spotting the well camoflauged creatures! What an upbringing! On our final night on the island the "islanders" hosted us to a fantastic feed and evening of entertainment. This involved strange and wacky fancy dress costumes, impromptu tribal music and excellent lego adventures!

The 5 days passed far too quickly and before long the boat was coming out to take us home. We were treated to the joy of getting rid of the old rotten eggs that were no longer needed. At low tide we smashed up the eggs on the tide line and had aiming competitions, this is how you get your thrills on an island! We said our farewells and were sent off armed with star shaped gingerbread biscuits, phone numbers, e-mail address and a wonderful set of memories. Maybe some day we'll make it back to the island, if only to check the progress of our seedlings.

Thank you to all who made my week on Maud Island so much fun!



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