Tiritiri Matangi

Tiritiri Matangi is an island that is an hour ferry ride from Auckland, and one of the best bird sanctuaries here. I've mentioned before that the dominant threat to NZ species is introduced predators and it is only feasible to eradicate them on islands. There is too much land on the mainland to find them all and if you miss even a few, they multiply. In two years, a pair of rats can turn into 10,000 rats if not controlled. On Rangitoto, another small island, it took 10
years to kill 25,000 animals to make it predator free.

Once all predators were eradicated from Tiritiri Matangi, they set about introducing their rarest birds into this safe haven. With no predators, the birds have thrived. The bird life here is much denser, more varied, and features rare species, so I got to see some great birds. Furthermore, as I have mentioned, the birds are not afraid of people, so it takes no skill or patience to get close to them.

The North Island Saddleback, pictured here, was reduced to a tiny population on one very small offshore island, but now they are thick on Tiritiri and I was able to see several.



Posted by Hello