Pest-free plans taking shape

The Forest Bridge Trust wants a predator-free stretch of land from the Kaipara Harbour to Tawharanui.

Plans by the Forest Bridge Trust to establish a pest-free connected landscape, west of Tawharanui Regional Park, are making progress, with a project coordinator appointed, pest control workshops planned and wildlife monitoring due to start.

The initial focus will be on three out of seven regional hubs – Matakana East (Green Road and Rainbows End), Matakana River and South Tamahunga (Omaha Valley Road), according to Marguerite Vanderkolk, who is coordinating the trust’s two-year Eastern Connectivity Project. Pest control workshops will be run, with free traps and training provided for landowners, and a conservation biologist will lead monitoring activity to establish current wildlife levels.

“At the end of the project’s two-year timeline, the trust will need to know how effective its efforts have been, so baseline monitoring will be carried out in the first three hubs over the coming months,”

Marguerite says. “This involves exploring each hub, observing and recording birdlife, types of vegetation and so on, and lots of eyes and ears are needed to help with this.”

The Eastern Connectivity Project was established by the Forest Bridge Trust as part of its aim to create a predator-free stretch of land from the Kaipara Harbour to Tawharanui. A meeting held in Matakana a year ago attracted significant interest and commitment from local landowners, encouraging the trust to move forward with the project.

Anyone wishing to volunteer for wildlife monitoring should email virginia@theforestbridgetrust.org.nz.

For any other inquiries, call Marguerite Vanderkolk on 027 528 4658 or email marguerite@theforestbridgetrust.org.nz