Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd estimates 250 pilot whales were killed last week. Is it time tradition was buried with whale bones littering the seabed?
Sea Shepherd protestors have been arrested trying to stop the pilot whale hunts in the Faroe Islands, but video footage and photographs by other group members captured the horrors of the mass slaughter.
The whale hunt known as the grindadráp, or “grind”, is a centuries old tradition with recorded history dating back to 1584, according to whaling proponents Whaling.fo. The whale meat and blubber once provided an important food source for the Faroese people, and whale oil was used for cooking and export. Continue reading →
The genetic blueprint for New Zealand’s national bird reveals the kiwi’s adaptation to a nocturnal, ground-dwelling lifestyle around 35 million years ago has meant poorer eyesight, but superior smelling powers
Published online in Genome Biology, the study by researchers in Germany identified genetic mutations that have deactivated genes related to colour vision, as well as other mutations that have enhanced the kiwi’s sense of smell compared to other birds.
The kiwi is an evolutionary phenomenon, and an endemic species to New Zealand, a land that was geographically isolated after its separation from Godwana 80 million years ago. This isolation makes New Zealand ideal for studying evolutionary processes. Continue reading →
Stephen Fry and social media launched this rare parrot to stardom, and now this tech-savvy kakapo puts fame to good use
Back in 2009, Stephen Fry visited New Zealand’s Codfish Island with zoologist Mark Carwardine to film BBC2’s Last Chance to See, a documentary about animals on the edge of extinction.
Now, with almost 6.5 million views of ‘Shagged by a rare parrot’ on YouTube, their encounter with Sirocco, the flightless parrot, has achieved phenomenal worldwide coverage. Not bad for a species that previously wasn’t well-known even in New Zealand, despite its international critically endangered status.
Today, Sirocco features on the NZ Department of Conservation blog, he has his own Facebook page with 155,000 likes and a Twitter account, as you might expect of a bird. Continue reading →
Research suggests owners are reluctant to accept the cat predation risk to wildlife and a cat welfare approach may be needed
Domestic cats have been introduced by humans across the world and growing cat populations are placing local wildlife under greater pressure. Cat predation compounds the survival problem by adding to habitat loss and food scarcity for some species.
Free-roaming cats on islands have contributed to the extinction of native bird, mammal, and reptile species unable to fend off this introduced predator. In mainland environments, cats are impacting local bird and mammal populations, with large numbers killed each year. Continue reading →
Fewer turtle doves will now survive their epic 3,000 mile migration from Africa to European breeding grounds, leaving conservationists stunned
Hunters have won a Malta referendum allowing them to continue the tradition of shooting turtle doves and quail in spring, from April 14 until April 30. The margin of victory was slim, reflecting widespread Maltese opposition to this tradition. Hunting of these birds is banned elsewhere in the European Union. Continue reading →
Will the New Zealand government protect the last 50 Maui dolphins from fishing and oil industry threats?
Experts presented new research on the critically endangered Maui’s dolphin that sends a clear message to the New Zealand government: act now or be responsible for following in China’s footsteps after the extinction of the Yangtze River dolphin in 2006.
In 2014, Otago University professors Dr Liz Slooten and Dr Steve Dawson, the world’s leading New Zealand dolphin experts, estimated the Maui’s dolphin population at 55 adults over one year old. Continue reading →
The set net ban zone will only be extended if the Maui dolphin is seen beyond the protected area, but the chance of seeing dolphins is slim while habitat is unprotected
The campaign to save the critically endangered Maui dolphin, endemic to New Zealand, has escalated into an international affair. While environmental groups, marine scientists, the Ministry for Primary Industries and the New Zealand seafood industry are caught in a blame game, with the Department of Conservation mediating, cause of dolphin death is crucial.
DoC sends all Maui and Hector’s dolphins that are intact enough for analysis to Massey University, where Veterinary Pathologist Dr Wendi Roe performs the post-mortems.
As Roe dissects a savoury muffin, her lunch between meetings, she apologises before getting straight into the discussion on post-mortems. Roe acknowledges the difficulty in identifying bycatch victims.
“There’s nothing specific, that you can say ‘that animal has drowned in a fishing net’… there’s nothing you can see, no test that you can do, that is 100 percent diagnostic of drowning.”
Even if a dolphin is caught in a net, Roe makes sure there is no other explanation.
Roe is reflective. “When you see them come in they’re beautiful, and they’re intact, and that’s sad.” But she doesn’t get emotional about them. “As a species, yes, but not individuals.”
When a dolphin is on the table, Roe has a job to do.
As a pathologist, she’s interested in how they died. Information gleaned from an individual helps prevent others from dying. In her office, she keeps files of dolphin reports on her bookshelf and a tall filing cabinet dominates the wall behind her. A wall map plots colour-coded sightings from Kaipara Harbour to Hawera.
The Maui dolphin is a sub-species of the Hector’s dolphin that inhabits South Island. Up to 1.6m long, these tiny dolphins with distinct rounded dorsal fin are among the world’s smallest, and with numbers estimated at only 55 adults over one year old, the Maui dolphin is also the world’s rarest.
According to pathology reports held by DoC, dolphin W12-16Ch was a young female Hector’s; a bycatch victim with ‘encircling linear impressions (net marks) over her melon on both sides, and short linear lacerations on the leading edge of the right flipper,’ but an otherwise healthy dolphin.
Considering Maui and Hector’s dolphin biology – a female does not reach reproductive maturity until 7 to 9 years old, giving birth to one calf every 2 to 4 years – the loss of a female is significant to species’ survival, particularly the Maui dolphin with only 20 breeding females left.
The number of dolphins dying in gillnets is likely to be underestimated. There is no incentive for fishermen to report bycatch, because they risk further protective measures that will affect their livelihood. Beachcast dolphins are generally reported by the public, but as Roe points out, beaches are not busy during winter months. Bodies may be quickly washed away by storms.
However, in the joint DoC and MPI 2012 Maui’s Dolphin Threat Assessment, fishing-related activities were nonetheless identified as the main threat, causing 95.5% of human-related mortalities. The remaining 4.5% was attributed to oil and mining activities, vessel traffic, pollution and disease.
Otago University marine experts Liz Slooten and Steve Dawson predict functional Maui dolphin extinction within two decades. The population can sustain one death in 10 to 23 years, yet the estimated death rate from bycatch alone is 3 to 4 per year.
Nylon gillnetting is so fine it is almost invisible, and dolphins become entangled. Interviewed by journalist Zoe Helene, Slooten describes what happens.
“A dolphin caught in a net struggles madly to try to escape. At the end of this struggle, the dolphin suffocates. It would take up to five minutes or so to die.”
Like humans, dolphins are social mammals. Slooten recalls, “We’ve seen one dolphin that had died in a gillnet that was covered in fresh toothrakes, many of which were bleeding. It seems that the other dolphins in the group tried to get this dolphin out of the net and failed.”
While acknowledging that the Maui dolphin’s Threat Management Plan revision in 2013 provides some extra protection from set nets, Forest & Bird Advocacy Manager Kevin Hackwell wants more. “The set net ban needs to be extended to all regions where these nationally-critical Maui dolphins are found. That includes all harbours and offshore to the 100m depth contour.”
There is international support too. At the International Whaling Commission meeting in September, 26 countries voted for total protection of the Maui dolphin from fishing-related threats.
But resistance is strong. New Zealand’s fifth largest export earner, the seafood industry is a dominant player in the conservation game. In January’s contribution to The Fishing Paper, Seafood New Zealand is critical of protection zones in the absence of sightings. “The government has brought in yet more fishing restrictions to protect the pods of phantom Maui’s said to be resident off the Taranaki coast.”
They argue that fishing has a temporary impact on the environment, unlike farming’s permanent impact. But extinction is permanent and dolphin numbers are decreasing as the debate continues.
While the prospect of Maui dolphin extinction is unthinkable, Roe is looking beyond Maui at Hector’s swimming in their wake.
Since the 2012 Threat Assessment, research led by Roe published in Veterinary Parasitology in 2013, identifies another threat. Roe examined Toxoplasma gondii infection in Hector’s and Maui dolphins received by Massey between 2007 and 2011. Toxoplasmosis was identified as the cause of death in 7 of 28 dolphins, including 2 of 3 Maui dolphins. Studies on other species have identified indirect effects on populations, through changes in behaviour, reproduction, and predation risk.
Roe has been frustrated by the slow acknowledgement of the role of disease in declining populations. She smiles and nods at the suggestion that her research hasn’t had as much publicity as bycatch research, and explains that a lot of the research on dolphins worldwide may be biased.
“There are lots of people who research because they want to prove that they’re all dying in the fishing industry, or they want to prove that none of them are dying in the fishing industry.”
Her research was initially seen to excuse the fishing industry by directing the focus away from fishing-related mortality towards toxoplasmosis as the killer.
Roe points out that her findings relate only to dolphins washed up on the beach. She supports scientists’ findings on fishing impacts, but is keen to see disease mortality included in population modelling.
“I strongly believe we need to have strict controls on fishing zones and fishing nets, but the situation is even more important than we thought, because there’s more than one thing killing them.” Roe’s voice is soft, but authoritative.
When asked about Government attitude to Maui extinction, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy is clear in his written response. “Our position is that if there are sightings beyond the protected area then we will review the boundaries, but in 900 fishing trips, there have been no observations of Maui dolphins in these areas.”
The observer program on commercial fishing boats leaving Taranaki is well-intentioned, but watching murky coastal waters for tiny dolphins must require uninterrupted concentration and 20/20 vision.
Barbara Maas, NABU International’s Head of Endangered Species Conservation, criticises economic-driven decisions on protection zones that “reflect fishing interests rather than match Maui’s dolphin distribution.” Maas recently told Agence France-Press that having exhausted the scientific arguments, NABU, supported by 100 conservation groups, is proposing a boycott of New Zealand seafood.
Roe is not interested in extremist action, but believes collaboration is key to Maui and Hector’s dolphin conservation. She is involved in the Maui dolphin Research Advisory Group, a DoC and MPI initiative that held its first meeting last June. Including representatives from central government, regional councils, the fishing industry, environmental groups, scientific researchers, and iwi, the aim is to inform Maui conservation decisions through further research and population monitoring.
Roe’s current research is to identify how toxoplasma gondii is transmitted to dolphins. The most likely route into the marine environment is via contamination of fresh-water run-off. Oocysts, or spores, carrying the parasite and shed in cat faeces can contaminate coastal waters via feral cat populations, and storm water via domestic cat populations. Hector’s and Maui dolphins forage in harbours and estuaries and could ingest oocysts from water, or from eating fish and squid.
Declining to speculate about Maui survival, Roe sees their plight as a warning for Hector’s.
“I’m probably a little bit back-to-front on this,” she says, believing resources are best directed at looking after those there are more of.
It may be too late for Maui dolphins with our Government fixed in its position on protection zones like the set nets trapping them, but their endangered relative, Hector’s, could pull through.
“There are lots of lessons we can learn about what we should be doing now. It would be nice to react before there are 55 left.”
Note: DoC now uses “Maui”, but “Maui’s” has been preserved in quotes, document and group names
Image credit: S. Dawson (from NABU International website)
Self-described animal lovers value pets, but in our society, birds are way down the pecking order. Yet they deserve our care and protection. My speech for birds. Prize-winner at the Massey University Speech Awards 2014 .
Maria Montessori’s method of early childhood education had a defining and lasting effect on my family, especially her emphasis on a child’s care and respect for people and the environment.
I’m anxious then that our children are growing up in a society where economic concerns outweigh ecological concerns, where status outweighs values and where oneself outweighs others. Philosopher Peter Singer condemns this human-centeredness; he believes all animals are equal and deserve equal respect.
People often place value on animals based on their value to people, but this ignores the value in animals existing for their own sake. People value pets but in our constructed animal hierarchy, wildlife is demoted. And if you take birds, they’re way down the pecking order, but surely birds deserve our care and protection?
Sir David Attenborough certainly thinks so: “What wild creature is more accessible to our eyes and ears, as close to us and everyone in the world, as universal as a bird?”[i]
The bar-tailed godwit is a world record holder and New Zealand plays a part in this incredible bird’s story. In March 2007, these modest-looking birds hit the headlines when satellite tagging revealed they flew non-stop for over 10,000 km from New Zealand to Northern China, then continued on to breeding grounds in Alaska.[ii] In September they returned to New Zealand in a direct flight of 11,680 km, the longest journey without a feeding stop made by any animal. During summer you can glimpse these superheroes feeding in the mudflats at Foxton Beach in the Manawatu.
If the Minister of Internal Affairs in 1941 hadn’t issued a hunting ban to end their mass slaughter, believing this remarkable bird worthy of protection, it may have been a different story. Opponents argued that protection should only be imposed in cases of economic importance, scientific value or danger of extinction. The problem with waiting until birds are in danger is that we risk being too late.
Take a look at the bird immortalised on your five dollar note. The yellow-eyed penguin with its distinctive yellow crown is unique to New Zealand but sadly, it is one of the rarest penguins in the world. To make way for farming, early settlers set fire to coastal forest and scrub habitat. Penguins were forced to nest further inland and adult birds, eggs and chicks became easier prey for the dogs, cats, and stoats the settlers brought with them.[iii]
If you’re familiar with the Otago Peninsula, you might know the hide at the far end of Sandfly Bay. If you’ve been there at dawn you will have seen these majestic penguins slowly zigzagging down steep rocky slopes to the sea and you will know how unique and special they are. If you’ve been to ‘Penguin Place’, hurrying through tunnels linking hides as you follow a solitary penguin from the beach through dunes to meet its chick, you will know. And you don’t have to see to know. I’m sure I’ll never see an Emperor penguin in the Antarctic but just knowing they are there is reason enough to care.
The New Zealand dotterel is another native bird threatened by habitat loss, predation and human disturbance. You may have noticed this wary red-breasted bird with bandy legs keeping her eye on you as she hurries across the sand. She may even feign a broken wing to draw you away from her nest. With housing and tourist development, her beach habitat is busier than ever. Her eggs are well-camouflaged in a scrape in the sand just above the high tide mark but they’re easily crushed by people, horses or cars.[iv]
Dogs running off the lead can also crush her eggs, or disturb her as she incubates, or even kill her chicks. Cats take her eggs in daytime and night hunters can pluck her from her nest. Her unfledged chicks are easy prey too; one cat can wipe out all the nests near its home in a single night.
If you live near dotterel habitat, keep cats inside, and dog walkers please check restrictions, especially in the breeding season. An egg laid on Motuihe Island has twice the chance of surviving to fledgling compared to mainland areas where predators roam, so it’s worth our effort.[v]
And what about the kiwi? Our national icon could become extinct on the mainland within 50 years. Dogs are the main killer of adult kiwi in Northland where the average lifespan is 14 years compared to 45 to 60 years elsewhere.[vi] Around Whangarei, more than 320 kiwis have died from dog attacks in the last 12 years.[vii] That’s 320 we might have saved.
Conservationists work tirelessly on breeding, pest control, and research, yet their work can be undone in just one night of rampage. Dogs – whether hunting dogs, farm dogs, or pets – are responsible for 80% of adult kiwi deaths each year. It’s true the population can handle some chick losses, but the death of a breeding adult is far more serious. Because the kiwi doesn’t have a breastbone, even a curious dog not intending harm can cause death.
BNZ, who sponsors ‘Save the Kiwi’ campaign, believes with better awareness the decline can be reversed.[viii] If owners keep dogs inside or in an escape-proof garden, especially at night when kiwi leave their burrows, and if roaming dogs are reported to DOC, kiwi deaths can be prevented. Dogs kill in seconds, but aversion training discourages them from approaching kiwi and is very effective.[ix] Why wouldn’t we take these easy measures to help?
Kiwi chicks are killed by cats roaming in kiwi territory during the breeding season. Owners can’t control where their cat goes at night, and you might be surprised to learn that domestic cats wearing radio transmitters were found to roam up to 20 km from home.[x] Partners in crime, stoats, and cats kill a staggering 70% of kiwi chicks before they reach 6 months of age.
It’s a tragedy. Our daughter, a zoologist and passionate birder, tells me how gentle and endearing this flightless bird is. She describes the thrill of being in the bush in the moonlight, hearing a kiwi call, then seeing this rare bird creep past, foraging as it goes.
Cats don’t just kill kiwi. The average cat kills 13 birds a year. [xi] A WSPA pet survey reveals New Zealand has 1.4 million cats, so the death toll is huge.[xii] Why does this matter? After all, you might argue, birds aren’t important, and anyway, cats catch rats, don’t they? That may be true, but there are other methods of controlling rats that don’t harm birds, including traps and new poisons, so we don’t need cats to catch rats.
Native birds could disappear forever, but if we’re truly clean and green we must conserve bird diversity. I’m not suggesting public commentator Gareth Morgan’s cat-free society. Pets are part of our culture. But we have a duty and a moral obligation to be responsible pet owners and look beyond the interests of our own household.
Cats are predators. It may be distasteful, but Tiddles is equally at home tearing apart fledgling dotterel as he is snuggling up on the sofa. Like teenagers, if you let them out all night while you sleep, you can’t be sure what they’re up to.
So what can we do to help? The story of Sylvia Durrant, the long-time volunteer for SPCA Birdwing now in her eighties, is an inspiring one.[xiii]
Many years ago Sylvia was a nurse and knew little about birds, but she volunteered in her spare time. Her home and back yard have become a hospital filled with cages and feathered patients. Fondly known as the ‘bird lady’, Sylvia visits schools to talk about caring for sick and injured birds and she is a passionate advocate. She knows first-hand the damage cats can inflict and she teaches responsible ownership.
If you have a cat, Sylvia asks you to keep it inside at night and to pop on a collar and bell when it’s roaming in the daytime. You might think a bell won’t work, but bells are effective and reduce bird catch rates by 50%.[xiv] You might say your cat doesn’t hunt, but did you know cats bring home less than one-third of their total kill?
Feral cat populations quickly spiral out of control so de-sex your cat to prevent kittens that may become wild. Gareth Morgan condemns the SPCA policy of releasing neutered feral cats the SPCA says have a right to life.[xv] What about birds’ rights he asks? He has a point. Like the Minister of Internal Affairs who protected godwits, you can save birds by preventing these killing sprees.
Tiritiri Matangi in the Hauraki Gulf is known as ‘The Singing Island’, but there was a time when forest birds were forced to leave and silence fell.[xvi] Early settlers cleared forest for houses, crops and animal grazing. By the time they left, the forest had been decimated.
Thankfully Ray, a lighthouse keeper turned ranger, led the restoration in the 80s and now this forested paradise is home to a chorus of species, including the rare takahe, saddleback and stitchbird. Pests have been eradicated and bush boardwalks let visitors see what’s possible with vision, dedication and patience. But there’s still work to be done on the mainland.
Every year in October, celebrities campaign for Forest & Bird ‘Bird of the Year’ and the public can vote for their favourite native.[xvii] Past eminent stars include the New Zealand falcon, the kiwi and the kakapo, and you may recall Stephen Fry’s humping encounter with Sirroco that raised him to ambassador status for this critically endangered parrot.
Birders aren’t a weird species huddled in hides; they’re people who care. Cast your vote and tweet your friends – “birds are cool”. We can join wildlife conservation groups – ‘Kiwis for Kiwi’ website is full of information for volunteers, pet owners, hunters and more.[xviii] We can show our children how to tread softly in nature, how to watch, listen and care. DOC’s website has video clips to inform and inspire tomorrow’s conservationists. [xix] We can set up a feeding table, especially in winter, and a birdbath is a lifeline in summer. We can extend our love for pets to the wildlife in our back yards, on our farmland, in our countryside.
Birds are beautiful. Grab your coat, grab your binoculars, grab your children and get out into the bush. Take your time. Stop, look, and listen. Hear the whoosh of the kereru in the treetops or the tui’s melancholic notes. See the fantail flitting back and forth or the blackbird foraging on the floor. Even in the largest cities, you’re never far from nature in New Zealand. Open your eyes to our country’s amazing birds and let their songs into your heart.
[v] Neate, & Hester R. (2011). Breeding success of northern New Zealand dotterels (Charadrius obscurus aquilonius) following mammal eradication on Motuihe Island, New Zealand. Notornis. 58(1), pp. 17-21.
