We are extremely fortunate that our colleagues at Bay Conservation Alliance in Tauranga have offered us a placement in the next intake of their Cadet Programme, Tauira Mahi.

A focal point of Predator Free Hauraki Coromandel Community Trust (PFHCCT) efforts is the conservation of the matuku-hūrepo, or Australasian bittern, a nationally critical species native to New Zealand.

Park rangers Bruce Harrison and Emma Whitton from Shakespear Open Sanctuary attended the Mustelid Summit to share their success in dealing with a stoat incursion in their pest-free sanctuary north of Auckland.

Waiheke Island’s stoat eradication programme has achieved amazing results in the short time since its inception in 2020. Frank Lepera, Stoat Operations Manager at Te Korowai O Hauraki, recently shared how these results were achieved at the Mustelid Summit, hosted by Predator Free Hauraki Coromandel.

Olivia Rothwell spoke recently at the Mustelid Summit about the work Predator Free 2050 are doing in technology and science to support predator eradication

Discover how the intricacies of genome testing help with predator control through the work done by Dr Andrew Veale.

The work of the Thames Coast Kiwi Care (TCKC) group has been truly transformational to the area they operate in. Due to the work of its volunteers trapping mustelids (stoats, weasels, ferrets) along the Thames Coast, the kiwi population was saved from the brink of collapse.

A hardy bunch of volunteers from the Otama Reserves Group swapped their ugg boots for their gumboots on Sunday, braving the rain and cold in the first of two planting bees. With 2000 native plants provided by Coastcare it was a case of all hands on spades, with no heed paid to the wind and rain.

Anyone who loves the Coromandel knows that the best places lie at the end of the windiest gravel roads with their requisite one-way bridges and potholes. Down one of these pathways to paradise lies the Hinds Farm where Janice Hinds, volunteer trapper and Kate Small, trustee, welcome us into the heartland of the Whenuakite Kiwi Care Group (WKCG).

Tucked away out of sight in a quiet corner of the Coromandel, one small but clever conservation group has made conditions so pleasant for the local birdlife that dotterels are leaving the busy oceanfront and roosting in this protected inland area.

Proudly jutting out between the harbour and the estuary, at high tide Whangamatā becomes almost surrounded by water. The committed volunteers at Whangamatā Harbour Care (WHC) are doing all they can to keep this unique moat around their town as healthy as possible.

Pest Free Tairua has a unique goal: to make their entire town free of predators that prey on our precious native flora and fauna.

Waitaia Bay is the kind of place you dream about: lush native bush running down to kiss the white sand beach while rocky cliffs stand sentry. Within that verdant bush kiwi flourish undisturbed, thanks to their dedicated caretakers.

How the hunt for a single stoat turned into a conservation project with dozens of volunteers protecting 11,000 hectares.

Wetlands surround us as we make our way to the birthplace of Mana Manu Trust, a conservation group with as much warmth as the seaside settlement of Whangapoua where it operates.

The Matarangi Bluff Scenic Reserve is a treasure box of conservation, with each corner of the track revealing a new piece of beauty or precious species.

Across our region, a vast number of farmers and landowners are protecting their backyards (which are a little bigger than most!) and the taonga species that live there. We chatted with Kapowai Kiwi Group (KKG), a community conservation group located just outside of Coroglen who have been doing just that.

Follow the songs of Tui, Kākā and Korimako down the unpaved road from Coromandel Town to the endearing sanctuary that is Tuateawa. The warm embrace of native flora such as Harakeke, Nikau, and Rātā paint a moving picture of the wild and lively Aotearoa New Zealand that we yearn for.