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Two student members of a trapping group at Whangaparāoa College have been going above and beyond, their efforts acknowledged recently for the most rats caught in a single year on any of the Coast’s 120 traplines.
Kealan Jay and Ruby Douglas have given up many hours of their own time to make a real difference to the rat population in and around the school, catching a total of 58 rats this year. They received an award for their contribution at the annual Pest Free Hibiscus Coast volunteer celebration and awards, held last weekend (November 12).
The Pest Free Hibiscus Coast’s Jenny Hanwell has been working with the college’s EnviroGroup on the trapping for around three years. There are two traplines that encircle the school. They target introduced pests – in particular, rats and possums. Several of the school’s learners are involved in the weekly management of the lines, checking, recording catches and re-baiting them.
Jenny says this year’s students have been particularly proactive.
Ruby says she does this work because she wants to do something to help native birds and protect the environment.
“I’m not usually outdoorsy but was looking for something extracurricular that’s a bit different,” she says. “And I love birds, so have really got into this.”
Ruby says she is torn between applying to study conservation or anthropology at university.
The traps are so well used that Pest Free Hibiscus Coast recently upgraded them to a more hardwearing trap type.
