Ten rare birds evacuated from Motutapu Island during hunt for stoat
Friday, 12 February 2021
The hunt for a stoat in Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf has seen 10 rare birds evacuated off Motutapu Island.
Nine adult tūturuatu (shore plover) and one juvenile tūturuatu have been captured and sent to Cape Sanctuary in Hawke’s Bay and the Wairarapa’s Pukaha National Wildlife Centre for at least the next two months.
The capture of the 10 birds – believed to be the entire remaining tūturuatu population on Motutapu – comes after three were found dead on the island, killed by a stoat.
The tūturuatu is one of the world’s rarest shore birds. With a wild population of around 240 birds, the survival of the endangered species relies on island biosecurity, breeding in captivity and predator-free islands.
**READ MORE:
* Hunt on to catch another stoat in Auckland's Hauraki Gulf after rare birds found dead
* Auckland's island-hopping stoat: Elusive pest found in trap on Rangitoto Island
* Auckland's island-hopping stoat: Inside the bid to outsmart an 'expert killer'
**
Rangers first discovered a tūturuatu dead on November 17 and the others on December 16 and January 14.
They were killed at night while incubating their eggs, causing a disruption in breeding pairs and a serious setback for the Motutapu population, which has struggled to become established.
Other bird remains have been found and although hard to identify, they appear to be non-natives, Department of Conservation (DOC) senior ranger David Wilson said.
Although stoat droppings had been collected, DNA laboratory testing was unable to determine if the stoat is male or female.
Wilson said the stoat had been crossing back and forth between Motutapu and Rangitoto islands, which are connected by a causeway.
Although 10 trail cameras have been deployed on the islands, the stoat has not been spotted.
Two stoat dogs deployed from January 11 to 15 had found “indications” of the stoat, including prey remains and droppings.
But it is hoped thirty-five extra traps deployed on top of the approximately 370 traps already in use will catch the stoat – and soon.
DOC’s Dave Houston said the capture of the juvenile tūturuatu was a “small bright spot” in the stoat hunt.
“It was one of this year’s chicks and it had been missing and feared dead.”
It is not the first time a major operation has been launched to catch a stoat on the islands.
DOC recently ended a hunt on neighbouring Rangitoto Island, after one of the pests was caught in a trap there. That hunt took seven months and cost DOC and Auckland Council $86,000 between them.
A male stoat, weighing close to 400 grams, was found in a trap on Rangitoto on September 25 – months after it was first spotted on another island in March.
Stoat paw prints were first spotted by a ranger on Motutapu on May 20, just a few weeks after a confirmed sighting on neighbouring Motukorea/Browns Island in mid-March.
A dog search in early October indicated no further stoat presence, so the operation was ended.
DOC has previously said it could not be absolutely certain the stoat trapped on Rangitoto was the island-hopping stoat.
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