From the 30th of April to the 4th of May the Blue Penguin Trust goes on the road providing information about blue penguins and other seabirds, and updating locals on new predator trapping techniques.
The roadshow will visit Hokitika. Reap Hall on 30 April, Franz Josef Glacier’s DOC office on 1 May, Haast’s DOC office on 2 May, Hector community hall on 4 May
The roadshow will provide people with information, skills and knowledge that allows them to help with the conservation of penguins and other wildlife on the Coast. Members of the Trust will also visit local schools to talk to children about blue penguins.
Trust Chair Kerry-Jayne Wilson is a former Lincoln University ecology lecturer. She has devoted 40 years to researching penguins and other seabirds.
“I will be giving talks on the seabirds of the West Coast talking in detail about blue penguins, Fiordland crested penguins and Westland petrels. I will talk about their biology and conservation in particular the threats they face and how we can help with their conservation,” she says.
The blue penguin, or Korora, is the world’s smallest penguin. It is a protected native species and its numbers are declining on the West Coast.
The West Coast Blue Penguin Trust monitors long term population and breeding trends and the impact of predators on the blue penguin. Ranger Reuben Lane currently monitors five penguin colonies near Charleston. Colonies at Okarito and the Wanganui River Mouth near HariHari are also being monitored in conjunction with the Department of Conservation.
Reuban will talk in detail about the results of monitoring and its implications on predator trapping. He has spent a decade perfecting his possum, stoat and rat trapping and will be passing on some of his secrets to those who attend the workshops.
“I’ll run a trapping workshop. I’ll bring along a selection of predator traps, from rats traps to wolf traps,” he says.
“Some are not known in this country so even experienced trappers are likely to see something new.”
The roadshows begins at Hokitika’s Reap Hall on 30 April from 1pm to 5pm. It then travels to Franz Josef for a presentation on Sunday 1 May at the DOC office between 1pm and 4pm. On Monday the roadshow heads to Haast’s DOC office between 3pm and 7pm. It ends in Hector on Wednesday 4 May between 10am and 1pm, and 3pm to 6pm.
All visitors are welcome.
