The Whakaangi Landcare Trust was formed in 2003 to do three main things - predator control, kiwi conservation and to help the native plants regenerate. The Trust employs professional trappers to achieve this, funded with donations and grants.

The area it manages is in the far north of New Zealand, on the Hihi Peninsula.  This means the landmass can be sealed off to future re-invasion by predators by a concentrated bait station line where farmland meets the bush.

The Trust had its origins 10 years ago, when a group of landowners formed the Whakaangi Landcare Group and pooled their funds to co-ordinate volunteers to tackle the huge possum, stoat, pig, rat and feral cat problem that existed on their properties.  There are about 29 landowners, with most properties varying from 100 to 350 acres. Eventually this group managed to win outside funding and become a legal entity, with the Trust forming in 2003.  It has nine Trustees, four operational officers and the project is controlled by a well-respected professional advisor.

The project is concentrated and highly organised, with rigid seasonal programmes in place. Within its first 18 months, an estimated 10,000 possums had been removed. Most pigs within the area were destroyed and the stoat and rat populations reduced significantly. Three years later most predators have been removed or are under control, and the juvenile kiwi have a brighter future to look forward to.

Convener, Colin Salt, says Whakaangi has the highest concentration of kiwi to landmass in New Zealand and he hopes it will be able to increase its stock and eventually re-populate other areas in the north. The flora, from pohutukawa to small native plants, has also shown huge recovery with spectacular growth rates.

Size of Area under Protection

The area of control covers more than 1346 hectares of bush with a very high concentration of Brown Kiwi – New Zealand’s northern-most Brown Kiwi population. The Trust also administers a current buffer of 800 hectares including HiHi township.

Biggest Challenge

The Project has been deemed a stunning success and Whakaangi now operates a Kiwi Protected Zone. To safeguard the zone, trapping has to be maintained well into the future and protective fences may eventually be required to prevent kiwi from escaping into farmland as their population increases. The perimeter trapping firewall will have to exist forever and because of this, Whakaangi is creating a large buffer zone extending through farmland and communities out to State Highway 10.

Biggest Successes

Because Whakaangi is now nearly predator free, the Trust is considering the introduction of three threatened native bird species.   To ensure a bright and exciting future, it is also looking at generating funding and support through eco-tourism. The Trust is also looking at establishing a 25-hectare nursery in the near future, with the assistance of the Department of Conservation.

The Trust has proved that a group of concerned landowners can become organised, seek and get the best professional help available, use their enthusiasm to convince various fund managers to help them, and run a project of extremely high standard to help reverse the decline of kiwi in New Zealand.

Funding

Bank of New Zealand Save the Kiwi Trust helps fund Whakaangi Landcare Trust.

The One Most Important Thing

The Whakaangi Landcare Trust considers its greatest achievement is to show that concerned New Zealanders can transform a large bush area to a nearly predator-free zone, allowing the plants and animals to begin to bounce back almost instantly. Although the landowners initially had little experience in pest control, they gathered knowledge from professional people and learnt how to impart their enthusiasm and goals to obtain the necessary funding. The early years brought many knock backs from outside sources, but the Trust learnt to overcome these. It is only too happy to share its large body of knowledge about pest control and administration procedures to help similar groups around the country. 

Contact Details

If you would like to help with the work of the Whakaangi Landcare Trust, or would like further information, contact its convener, Colin Salt, at:
Email: imageplus@ihug.co.nz
Postal address: Box 232, Mangonui, Far North, 0557