Category: Environment

Whangārei DOC staff are dangling from cliff edges and climbing trees to safeguard the threatened rātā vine species, carmine rātā, from myrtle rust.

The Abel Tasman National Park has been given the tick of approval as a home for pāteke, with the population of rare native ducks about to increase dramatically.

An earthmoving contractor will be working on Motutapu Island for the next four weeks repairing slip damage caused by Cyclone Debbie, just over a year ago.

One of the world’s most intensive rat and small rodent trapping networks is providing a safe haven for wildlife on Mt Taranaki, resulting in the release of more toutouwai / North Island robin back to mountain.

DOC is temporarily closing the walkway through Okura Bush Scenic Reserve, on Auckland’s North Shore.

The discovery of a large number of dead shellfish, in the Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve on Auckland’s North Shore, has sparked a multi-agency investigation led by DOC.

A difficult decision has been made to humanely euthanise 12 stranded pilot whales that were alive after a total of 38 stranded at the mouth of the Okuru River south of Haast.

The fight against the plant disease myrtle rust is changing gear, with a greater focus on a science programme to increase our understanding around the disease.

An ambitious plan to enable more people to enjoy the beauty of Mt Taranaki and strengthen connections to its natural and cultural heritage has been announced.

Hunters intending to hunt on public conservation land are reminded to be aware of their obligations.

Ulva Island’s intensive trapping network has stopped a rampage of rats in their tracks this summer after five unrelated rodents were caught on the island’s coastal network.

DOC is responding to a possible sighting of a stoat on pest-free Motuihe Island in the Hauraki Gulf.

DOC is closing the Mt Karioi summit tracks, near Raglan, following a confirmed finding of myrtle rust. It will be closed to the public until further notice.

Two options to protect areas of ocean off the east coast of the South Island will be considered by Fisheries Minister Stuart Nash and Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage.

Lincoln University and the Department of Conservation are teaming up to meet “a desperate need” in the parks and recreation sector.

New Zealand’s two bat species and native birds are thriving after predator control work in Fiordland National Park, Department of Conservation monitoring this summer shows.

One of New Zealand’s rare bats is on its way to recovery after successful large-scale predator control in Fiordland, according to a new science report released by Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage today.

The Million Dollar Mouse monitoring team has set out to complete a month-long assessment to determine the results of the complex eradication project.

Otago Peninsula’s Royal cam albatross chick died after it was attacked yesterday by a parent bird during a tough breeding season for the colony at Pukekura/Taiaroa Head says DOC.

A new report identifies opportunities and challenges facing agencies and the community in the future management of the Mackenzie Basin.

Mountain bike and tramping trails through the Whanganui National Park will ride better than last year following a massive volunteer effort in January this year.

DOC staff will be able to issue infringement notices and reduce the number of costly prosecutions under a bill that passed its first reading last night.

Te Kakahu/Chalky Island skink have been introduced to a new island home in Dusky Sound, Fiordland to improve the species’ security.

A group of Central Hawke’s Bay residents is fighting to save a rare type of native forest, the only one of its kind in the region.

The Dome Equipment Shed is being removed from Mt Ruapehu this month as it is no longer needed to house volcano monitoring equipment.

A group of geckos on Mana Island near Wellington were fitted with tiny backpacks today, as researchers hope to shed light on how far they move when transferred to new homes

The world’s first genetic analysis of the white shark population in Australasian waters is significant for their future conservation, New Zealand scientists say.

DOC and Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust estimate there are 250 breeding pairs of yellow-eyed penguins/hoiho along the Otago and Southland coastline as their annual breeding season comes to an end.

Longstanding Taumarunui volunteer, painter Bob Anderson (aka Sideshow Bob) has finished another major painting project for the DOC on the Whanganui River.

DOC is responding to two possible sightings of a black cat, at Islington Bay, which connects Rangitoto and Motutapu islands, in the Hauraki Gulf.

After two years “off the grid”, Sirocco, DOC’s spokesbird kākāpō, has come out of hiding.

DOC has had a wide response to its call for initial submissions for potential new Great Walks, with 30 tracks from across the country proposed.

A new report shows New Zealand is continuing to lose its precious wetlands and Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage says it will take years to turn the trend around.

World Wetland Day on 2 February presents a great opportunity to highlight the ongoing restoration work carried out on Lake Taupo’s Te Matapuna Wetland – one of the largest wetlands in the North Island.

DOC staff are working closely with police to track down the perpetrators of a spree of thefts along the Milford Road.

DOC rangers have been putting in the hard yards to free the Manawatu Estuary from the clutches of spartina, a nasty weed which takes over mudflats.

Three measures that will strengthen efforts to save kauri trees from dieback disease were agreed by the Kauri Dieback Governance Group when they met yesterday.

DOC is reminding the public that moulting penguins are particularly vulnerable at this time of year after a dog killed a Snares crested penguin at Kakanui, near Oamaru.

Milford Sound/Piopiotahi’s popular Lady Bowen Falls walk has reopened for the first time in more than 15 years.

A two-week research expedition to gather data on the elusive, endangered blue whale within New Zealand’s shores is due to set sail on Sunday 28 January.

DOC rangers have trapped and killed a rat on Tiritiri Matangi, a pest free island in the Hauraki Gulf.

An endangered dolphin found washed up at Port Waikato at the weekend, was the victim of a shark attack, a post mortem examination shows.

Summer is ‘boaty bag’ season in the Bay of Islands with up to 400 boaty bags being handed out to remind boaties of their responsibilities on the water and land.

A fluffy new Royal cam star hatched last night in the northern royal albatross breeding colony at Pukekura/Taiaroa Head on Otago Peninsula.

Trampers crossing the Waiau Pass between Nelson Lakes National Park and St James Conservation Area will find the new 6-bunk hut Waiau Hut a welcome sight at the end of their 15 km trek.

Individuals, groups and businesses have a novel opportunity to help boost conservation in New Zealand – by adopting a Fiordland Valley.

DOC has completed track upgrades in kauri forests throughout the Hauraki, Coromandel and Tauranga districts, to help prevent the spread of kauri dieback.

Toyota Kiwi Guardians is an activity programme that helps kids connect with nature by encouraging them to go on epic self-guided adventures and earn rewards.

Two historically and culturally significant landmarks – Bannockburn Sluicings and the Otago Central Railway Trail – will celebrate their recent elevation to Landmark status at events on 27 January.

Picton Dawn Chorus has secured $60,000 from DOC to support their pest control work.

A whopping 26 whio have arrived at the Whio Hardening Facility in Turangi.

Rakatu Wetlands, located on the floodplain of the Waiau River, will be the site for Fiordland’s 2018 World’s Wetland Day celebration on 27 January.

DOC is warning fishers to stay out of marine reserves around Banks Peninsula after a recent spate of alleged illegal fishing.

DOC is appealing for information about the cutting down of native trees at Robin Hood Bay, a popular coastal camping spot in Marlborough.

DOC is reminding people to keep safe as two female leopard seals continue their visits to Auckland’s seaside spots.

DOC is reviewing options to address the impact of pests within the Raukumara Forest Park.

A routine check of tracking tunnels on Tiritiri Matangi island on 8 January has launched a search for a rat on the inner Hauraki Gulf sanctuary.

A record number of whio ducklings have been located on Mt Taranaki in what is proving to be a boom year for the rare native blue duck.

MPI and DOC will continue to take a zero tolerance approach towards people who poach from the Te Tapuwae o Rongokako Marine Reserve north of Gisborne.

We are sad to confirm that a volunteer hut warden’s body was located near the Pinnacles Hut in Canterbury, in what appears to have been a fall.

We are reminding the public to be careful on and around the region’s beaches at this time of year, especially around nesting sites.

For the first time in more than a century, kakaruai/South Island robin have produced chicks on Motupōhue/Bluff Hill.

Central Hawke’s Bay’s Lake Whatumā Wetland Care Group has secured $25,000 from DOC to continue their critical restoration work.

A forest park near Wellington has been swarming with more volunteers than usual for the past year; and they’ve installed a massive new network of next-generation traps to tackle stoats and rats which prey upon brown kiwi and other native birds.

In a hidden valley, just a stone’s throw from the new Kapiti expressway, a lifestyle couple are restoring their 19-hectare block of bush for native lizards and insects.

Pirongia’s Te Aroaro o Kahu Restoration Society so desperately wants its own maunga to be a kōkako stronghold, its members have become deeply involved in protecting both the land and species where its future songbirds presently live.

The outstanding success of pest eradication and native species population growth achieved within Taranaki’s Lake Rotokare Scenic Reserve over several years is now requiring the ‘halo’ beyond the reserve boundaries to be extended ever further.

Two remote lakes south of Kawhia Harbour are to benefit from restoration work following successful funding applications to DOC’s Community Fund.

The fourth year of funding from the DOC Community Fund has been awarded to over 112 projects across the country.

Three new takahē arrived in Wellington this week and another is moving between pest-free islands. The movements will help provide companions for birds who have lost their elderly mates this year.

If you’re visiting the Taupo region over summer, there are plenty of trout fishing opportunities available.

The East Coast is a popular holiday spot for families looking to get away from urban hustle and bustle. There’s lots to do and plenty of places to explore.

DOC is keen to ensure people can enjoy our lizard species, without disturbing them.

DOC and Gisborne District Council are reminding the public to be careful near New Zealand dotterel/tūturiwhatu and banded dotterel nesting sites on the East Coast this summer.

Check out these tips for keeping Northland safe this summer.

The reclusive rock wren/tuke is on the rise in Kahurangi National Park due to our predator control programme, recent monitoring confirms.

A project to protect native species and enhance the landscape of Cape Foulwind in Buller will be boosted by support from the DOC Community Fund, Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage has announced.

A 171-year-old mystery, at the site of the battle of Ruapekapeka in Northland, has been solved.

A partnership between DOC, Te Arai and Mangawhai Shorebirds Trust, Te Uri o Hau Settlement Trust, and Boffa Miskell will protect the endangered fairy tern.

DOC Hawke’s Bay is looking for wardens at Waitara/Glenn Falls, Everetts and Kuripapango campsites.