We know next to nothing about tawaki’s marine ecology, their foraging ranges, which prey species they consume and at which water depths they forage. Critical information is missing to assess how human activities might impact on tawaki, be it ongoing climate change, fisheries activities or pollution of the marine habitat with mining effluents or oil-leaks.
This project will address the key aspects of tawaki’s marine ecology throughout the range from South Westland to Stewart Island.
We will:
- examine their foraging strategies across the different marine environments they inhabit
- study the spatial distribution of their diving activities to determine whether there are specific hot spots at sea
- investigate which marine and terrestrial aspects affect the species’ population dynamics
We also collaborate with the West Coast Penguin Trust to further knowledge and conservation management for tawaki through our collaboration as The Tawaki Coalition.
