Guardians of Te Arai’s dotterels

Te Arai residents Lynne and Reg Whale are so committed to the protection of rare dotterels that they give up several hours each morning from October to the end of summer to care for nesting birds.

They are regularly joined by Denis Newhook and Chris Wild, who are also committed to the wading birds’ continued survival.

There are about 1500 dotterels in New Zealand, with eight or nine pairs resident in the Canal Stream area of Te Arai. So far this season the Whales have identified six pairs with eggs or chicks, and days ago, Lynne came across a nest, containing three eggs, only metres from the car park at the popular surf beach. The couple quickly fenced off the area and erected signs warning beachgoers to keep themselves and their dogs away. Dotterel eggs are laid in a scrape of sand and are very vulnerable if left unmarked.

Dogs are prohibited from the Eyres Point carpark north to the Mangawhai refuge, one of only a few breeding areas for the critically endangered fairy tern, which often fly south to feed in the Canal Stream.

Chris Wild is pleased to see signage recently erected by the Department of Conservation, alerting dog owners to the prohibited area.

“It’s actually been off-limits to dogs since 2000, but many people are unaware of this, and few observe it.”

There’s a permitted dog exercise area from Eyres Point south.

Chris puts in hours over summer weekends keeping an eye on nesting birds and reminding dog owners to give the dotterels space.

“Even if your dog’s on a lead, just walking it past a nesting site can alarm the parent birds, who scream a warning to young to freeze until the danger is over. Obviously, this means a loss of eating time for the babies, and if the parents leave the nest, the eggs cool down and don’t hatch.”

Dogs are one of the biggest threats to the bird’s survival, along with introduced predators like possums, hedgehogs, weasels, rats and cats. Reg carries out a daily patrol of traps that he sets along the dunes at the forest edge, re-baiting where necessary and dispatching any wounded animals humanely with his shotgun.

The group, known as Dotterel Care Te Arai, has received grants from Rodney District Council for pest control, and its aims are well supported by DOC. The Whales would welcome new members, particularly someone with a gun licence and a 4WD motorbike to access remoter nesting areas.

“We have four others that lend a hand, but sometimes we’d love a day off and a few extras might make this happen,” said Reg.

Over the summer holidays, Chris, a former DOC employee, plans to distribute information to visitors to raise public awareness of birds’ plight.

PHOTO: From left, Reg and Lynne Whale, and Chris Wild at Te Arai.