Although we saw some early pairing up from our penguins in June, Ranger, Linden reports back on a late start for laying of eggs in the colonies:
“Over the past fortnight we have seen the first eggs laid at both of our monitored little penguin/ kororā colonies at Charleston. We generally see the first eggs laid around early August, so it seems as if this season they have started 2-3 weeks later than normal, and a similar trend is playing out at numerous other kororā colonies around the country. The exact reason for the late start is unclear, but food availability is the most likely cause. During the egg incubating phase, adults take turns incubating the eggs, swapping over every 2-3 days. The eggs take a little over a month to hatch, so we will hopefully begin to see chicks by the end of September!”
Trustee, Jill also reported a ‘party’ in her nest box last week, in preparation for the breeding season. She explained that right before breeding begins, there is often a lot of noise and hustle and bustle in the nest box, so she has taken this as a sign that things are finally starting. Watch this space!
While materials were chosen that would stand up to the harsh coastal conditions, those same coastal conditions are conducive to plant growth! Occasional checks of the fences have been carried out by volunteers and rangers so that any maintenance needs can be identified and remedied. The never-ending need for maintenance is managing the vegetation that can grow through the fence, for example gorse, blackberry and hydrangea, pushing it to breaking point in places, or flop over causing damage from the weight of rank grass, rushes and weeds such as montbretia.
Volunteers recently spent a few hours tidying up the main fence along Woodpecker Bay north of Punakaiki so a big shout out to them - thank you Fiona, Jony, Reef, Katrina, Mandy, Marty, Teresa and Deb! Flax had been pressing down on the fence, but now the fence has been freed up by these wonderful volunteers - and they picked up a fair bit of rubbish too.
Volunteer Natassja Savidge has offered to check and help maintain the Hokitika penguin protection fence and joined Ranger Lucy Waller and Manager Inger Perkins in May to inspect the length of the fence. Some minor issues were found but the main finding was the extent of the vegetation growth that was damaging the fence in places. Big thanks to Natassja!
