Island Life

Recent news, insights & articles from around the Island.

Trustee reflects on ‘miraculous’ rodent-free milestone

Richard Griffiths led the eradication project on Hauturu-o-toi to remove kiore nearly twenty years ago in 2004. Now he has joined the Hauturu Supporters Trust as a Trustee. He recollects…

What does best-practice biosecurity look like for Hauturu?

Te Hauturu-o-Toi / Little Barrier is home to a delicate ecosystem where adding or removing one species can have a knock-on effect with huge impact.  Should a pest arrive on…

Recovery opportunity for scallop fishery

One of the measures that Hauturu Supporters Trust advocated for has come to fruition. Under emergency measures the Hauturu Scallop Fishery was closed by Oceans and Fisheries Minister David Parker…

Hauturu lingers in the heart

Trustee Kate Waterhouse reflects on the Working Weekend, 28-30 October 2022. It’s strange that the bird that stays with me when I leave Hauturu-o-Toi is the most numerous of all…

Why no kiwi, Mr Shakespear?

by Dick Veitch  Images credited to Frances Shakespear from the Shakespear family collection. I have just finished reading 19 diaries written between 1897 and 1910 by members of the Shakespear…

Location Location Location!

By Tegan Evans PhD candidate at the University of Auckland Using marine protected areas (MPAs) correctly can be an amazing tool for passive restoration—effectively taking away human impacts from fishing…

Secrets of the New Zealand Storm Petrel

The New Zealand storm petrel (NZSP) was thought extinct for a century until its rediscovery at sea in the Hauraki Gulf in 2003. After much detective work, in 2012 a…

‘Charismatic Megafauna’

Chair’s report by John Clark I love the term “charismatic megafauna”. It describes endangered animal species that are large (relative to other species of the same category) and that arouse…

Snapshots from an Autumn Working Weekend

Words and images by Kate Evans On April 30, 11 intrepid volunteers from all around the North Island travelled to Hauturu for the autumn working weekend, accompanied by Trustee and…

Manta Ray Hotspot

By Kate Evans Did you know that New Zealand is home to oceanic manta rays? Ngāti Manuhiri call them whai rahi, and they have special significance for the seafaring hapū…