Island Conservation
NZ taking world leadership role against invasive species. New Zealand is taking action to protect its native species. The country has vowed to remove 100% of invasive rats, stoats, and possums by 2050. New Zealand Minister of Conservation Maggie Barry said: New Zealand’s commitment to Predator Free 2050 is the largest and most ambitious invasive species eradication […]
New Zealand schools team up with government to protect native plants and wildlife. In New Zealand, locals know how damaging invasive species can be. Recognizing the importance of local biodiversity and the opportunity to support native species, schools are teaming up with the New Zealand Department of Conservation. Many of our endemic wildlife species are on […]
The Atoll Fruit-Dove (Ptilinopus coralensis) is endemic to the islands of French Polynesia. This bird species is listed as Near Threatened by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature due to low population sizes in areas with introduced predators. This is the only species of dove in the Tropical Pacific that is adapted exclusively to low […]
An up-close look at the Antipodes Island Pipit, one of four land birds found only on Antipodes Island, New Zealand. In 2016, the New Zealand Department of Conservation, WWF-New Zealand, The Morgan Foundation, Heritage Expeditions, the New Zealand public, and Island Conservation partnered together to protect Antipodes Island’s native species by removing their primary threat–invasive house […]
Maud Island is a scientific sanctuary in the Marlborough Sounds. In 2013, invasive mice were discovered damaging the native ecosystem on Maud Island, New Zealand. Kakapo, native insects including weta, lizards, and the endemic Maud Island Frog were in need of conservation intervention. Maud Island biodiversity ranger Frank Higgott and his partner Sue Caldwell began a program to […]
Featured photo: Snipe on Antipodes Island. Credit: K. Walker
Wētā are giant insects that live in New Zealand and nowhere else in the world. There are many subspecies of Wētā; these can be found in trees, lowlands, caves, sand dunes, and soil. They look similar to grasshoppers, except for the obvious difference in size. New Zealand’s indigenous people, Maori, call Wētā “punga,” meaning the “spirit of […]
The polarized New Zealand Alpine Parrot, “Kea”, faces extinction due to invasive species and other threats. Kea are one of the most maligned of New Zealand birds, as well as one of our most loved. -Tamsin Orr-Walker, chair of the Kea Conservation Trust The New Zealand Kea (Nestor notabilis), ranked Vulnerable by the International Union […]
Snails, though not exactly a widely celebrated species, have much to offer. They may not be as popular or charming as the world’s widely-recognized endangered megafauna (tigers, elephants, rhinos, pandas, etc), but snails are important for ecosystems functioning around the world. Snails are decomposers–they break down natural material into smaller parts–and as such help to uphold nature’s cycle of life […]
Demobilizing Antipodes Island – a bittersweet end to an incredible work adventure. It has been 68 days since Jason Zito and I left the South Island of New Zealand bound for Antipodes Island to participate in the Million Dollar Mouse campaign to rid the island of damaging invasive mice. Maybe 68 days seems quite long, especially […]