Joining forces with Sustainable Coastlines in education

Education Ranger, Lucy, joined forces with Sustainable Coastlines Coordinator, Emma Hunter, visiting local Hokitika primary schools.

Lucy and Emma joined education programmes last week, pulling resources, ideas and skills together. They carried out the first step, called the “Priming session”, of the Litter Intelligence Programme‘s Four Phase Education Journey together.

Litter Intelligence is Aotearoa’s first and only national litter monitoring programme, enabling communities to collect data, gain insights and take action to prevent litter. Developed and launched in 2018 in collaboration with Stats NZ, the Department of Conservation and with funding from the Ministry for the Environment, the platform provides open, scientifically rigorous litter data from hundreds of survey sites around the country. The West Coast Penguin Trust has been very keen to collaborate with them and the opportunity finally arrived.

The “Priming session” usually involves the “Yoshi Challenge”. Learners begin by listening to the true story of Yoshi the Loggerhead Turtle and then set up and go through an obstacle course to recreate the challenges Yoshi had to overcome on her journey home. However they were looking to adapt the story to an animal that was more personal to students (we don’t see many Loggerheads around New Zealand). We knew just the right animal!

Last week, the “Yoshi Challenge” became the “Kororā Challenge”! Students from all the primary schools in Hokitika township got to learn about the challenging journey our blue penguins have to make each day, and then recreate it, creatively as an obstacle course for the rest of the class to complete. It was a really fun day, full of great education, a lot of laughs and chaos!

Kaniere Primary Blue Penguins get caught in a fishing net

Kaniere Primary students rely on team work to get their Blue Penguins through the obstacle course

St Mary’s Primary penguins try to dodge fast cars on the road – one of our number one penguin killers on the West Coast

Hokitika Primary penguins use their creative skills to create a challenging obstacle course that represents the challenging journey of a penguin each day. (The orange, metal objects represent dogs, one of the biggest threats to penguins on the West Coast.)

Emma Hunter, Sustainable Coastlines, and Kevin, the Trust Kororā mascot, discuss with the students the obstacles for penguins in their day to day lives

Your donation will be doubled to help us do more for West Coast penguins

December 1, 2023

Your donation will be doubled to help us do more for West Coast penguins

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Your donation, matched by a generous supporter, will help us understand and respond to threats to West Coast penguins.

Starting right this minute, we are very excited to share this opportunity with you. A very generous donor has offered to match donations up to $5000! With your help, we can reach $10,000 in donations in the coming weeks.

Donate now

To counterbalance Black Friday, Giving Tuesday was born for the following week. It's a day to remember and support causes you believe in and we're going to continue it through this season of giving and the summer! Your donation will help us better understand the threats to penguins here on the West Coast and take actions to protect them in 2024.

We have a fabulous opportunity to maintain and extend our penguin conservation projects, from research into threats to practical solutions, education and advocacy.

And we need you to make it happen!

Your donation will firstly ensure we monitor penguins, both little blue penguins - kororā, and Fiordland crested penguins - tawaki. The data we collect is critical in informing what actions we can take, so your donation will also help ensure we take the next steps, whether building penguin protection fences, working with school children or liaising with councils and developers for example. We know that you will feel good about supporting a cause you believe in and value - the work that we do and the penguins we all love. But did you know that science confirms that? I like to call it the 'joy of giving' and it turns out others call it that too. Some of the benefits - and joy - of making a donation, small or large, include a greater sense of community and a sense of purpose and fulfilment, a greater happiness and satisfaction, feelings of gratitude, an improved outlook on life and boost your mood! I have even read that giving lowers levels of inflation!

How to make a donation

There are a few ways you can donate and feel the warmth and joy of giving for penguin conservation. Easiest is via our donation page using a credit card - bish, bash, bosh - thank you! You can also go there to make a donation in memory of someone special. Also easy is a direct bank payment donation. We just ask that you also email us so we can thank you and send you a receipt. Whether credit card or bank payment, you can of course make it a regular donation if you'd like to keep that joy going! There are donation boxes at New World and J's cafe in Westport and in Hokitika at Moment's in Time/NZ Post, Hokitika Craft Gallery, and the Kiwi Centre. (Any suggestions for a location in Greymouth gratefully received!) And you could use any of these to make a donation on behalf of someone as a gift, Christmas or otherwise. We have a couple of cards you can print out to let them know. Download - Christmas Penguin - donation in lieu of gift card Download - Penguin love donation in lieu of gift card

Westland petrel/tāiko – be on the lookout!

November 7, 2023

Westland petrel/tāiko – be on the lookout!

Young Westland petrels disoriented by lights and rescued and released - photo Bruce Menteath

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Westland Petrel/Tāiko chicks fledge from November to January. Their first flight can be a tough one, as they are inexperienced fliers, and can become disorientated by bright lights and poor weather conditions. Adult birds are also found at any time of year.

Westland Petrel/Tāiko chicks fledge between November to January from their colony just south of Punakaiki. Their first flight can be a tough one, as they are inexperienced fliers, and can become disorientated by bright lights and poor weather conditions. Adult birds are also found at any time of year.

Once on the ground they need our help, as they are unable to take flight again easily, and are very vulnerable to being struck by cars and attacked by dogs. The main flight path area for these birds at the northern end of the Barrytown flats has no street lights, which is great for the birds ordinarily but means that they may be distracted by vehicle lights and come down on the highway. These large all black birds are then almost invisible against the black tarmac until the next car comes speeding along. If you're driving in the area, please be mindful of these birds particularly November to January, and travel a little slower. The same applies in all coastal areas where penguins could be crossing too - better for wildlife, safer for you, and less fuel used - win - win - win. The Department of Conservation and Westland Petrel Conservation Trust work together to help these birds get back out to the sea, and document when/where all birds are found, so we can work to remove attractive lights sources or hazards. Particularly around Punakaiki and Barrytown but in fact anywhere between Hokitika and Westport, there are a few things you can do to help reduce the risk to this special bird, which only breeds in one place in the world. To give them the best chance of success:

Avoid leaving bright outdoor lights on after dark and close curtains and blinds, as this confuses them
Keep dog(s) secure at home
Keep a cardboard box, with air holes and towel in your car, just in case!

If you find a bird on the ground,

Use a towel (or item of clothing) to cover the bird and gently lift it into a box (unwrap the bird once in the box), or move it away from danger (traffic).
- If you feel uncomfortable handling the bird or require assistance, please immediately call the numbers provided.
Birds found can be transported to the “Petrel Drop Off Boxes” at the DOC Visitor Centre (if the centre is closed go through the gate to the left of the front door).

*Leave your details in the log book.

If you are unable to transport the bird please call the numbers provided.
Please do not attempt to release the bird yourself.

24-hour contact numbers

Westland Petrel Conservation Trust 03 731 1826Department on Conservation 0800 DOCHOT (362468)

What happens next?

All birds are health-checked by DOC or the WPCT. Healthy and uninjured birds will be assisted to take flight again.
Injured or underweight birds are provided veterinary and rehabilitative care by DOC.
If you would like to know about your bird or attend its release, please let us know.

The flyer is here if you would like to print and keep handy, share etc: 2023 11 Westland petrel flyer PDF

Trust’s 2022-23 Annual Report

October 17, 2023

Trust’s 2022-23 Annual Report

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Our annual report always includes a message from the Trust Chair, the highlights and challenges of the previous year and our enormous thanks to all those organisations and individuals who have supported our work. This year, our Chair, Robin Long, reinforces our vision - sea and shore birds and their habitat across the West Coast Te Tai Poutini are healthy and thriving - highlights the funding challenges, and embraces the changes over the year. We report on our various projects and, for little penguins or kororā, this meant a poor season apparently linked to a severe cycle of La Niña conditions and the marine heatwaves that it brought last spring and summer. The little penguin mortality database we share with the Department of Conservation has been invaluable in focussing attention on the key threats to these birds. We have now worked on the data so that it can be viewed on maps providing even more value to our advocacy role and for council planners. It also helps focus our attention on areas where extra action may be needed, perhaps new penguin protection fences. Speaking of fences, we were very pleased to add fencing in the Limestone Creek area north of Punakaiki and will need to add more fencing between breeding seasons in the next couple of years to completely protect kororā in this section of the coast road. The report is available as a PDF via the link below, with updates on our Fiordland crested penguin / tawaki work, Cape Foulwind and Seal Island trapping projects, a note about our favourite petrel, the Westland petrel or tāiko, our education programme - much treasured by all the teachers and staff that get to work with Ranger Lucy Waller, and our awareness and advocacy work. We are so grateful to our donors and sponsors all year round but this is our annual opportunity to put it in writing where everyone can see it. Our heartfelt and huge thanks go to these wonderful individuals and organisations that enable us to help understand and better protect penguins and seabirds.

WCPT 2022-23 Annual Report (PDF)

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