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| On a wing and a prayer | |
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| Topic Started: Jan 12 2007, 12:09 AM (48 Views) | |
| Kahu | Jan 12 2007, 12:09 AM Post #1 |
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On a wing and a prayer The Dominion Post Tuesday, 9 January 2007 The history of the human habitation of New Zealand has not been a happy one for the animals that were here before the first footprints on what 65 million years of isolated evolution had made a unique ecosystem. The list of vanished species makes sorry reading. Moa, huia, the Haast eagle, the North and South Island piopio (native thrush), and too many others, now exist only as stuffed relics in museums, often donated by the collectors who contributed to their demise. Almost a third of the land and freshwater bird species endemic to New Zealand have become extinct. The list of those critically threatened is similarly depressing. It includes the black robin, the Okarito brown kiwi and the kakapo among its 25 species. However, there are encouraging signs. In our six-part series Kereru Calling, we outlined the efforts being made to keep the native wood pigeon off that list, and the part that ordinary New Zealanders can play in that effort. The Kereru Discovery Project, which the series highlighted, is an important example of how the good intentions most have toward the environment can be given substance. The kereru is not in danger of extinction - yet. No one is certain how many remain, but they are still a reasonably common sight. What is certain is that their numbers are tumbling, with the population thought to be shrinking by 20 per cent every decade. It is not only the beguiling flash of iridescent green that New Zealanders face losing from their forests, if the decline is not stemmed. Kereru have a unique role in the New Zealand ecosystem - they are the only New Zealand bird with a beak wide enough to eat the large fruit of miro and karaka, and transport their seeds, spreading those species far and wide. Kereru are under threat from the destruction of their habitat, and from the many competitors and predators that man has introduced into what was once a threat-free environment, beginning with the Maori introduction of the kiore (Pacific rat), and continued by Pakeha, who brought with them possums, stoats, ferrets, weasels, cats, rats and muskets. Sadly, there are some Maori who still regard it as their right to kill kereru - Robert Milton Cassidy, a member of Ngati Hine, was jailed for six weeks in 2004, unrepentant after shooting six birds. However, the vast majority of New Zealanders accept the 1922 government decision giving the birds absolute protection. That is not enough, and New Zealanders should take the small but vital steps outlined in the series to promote the species' chances. One of the most important for urban dwellers is ensuring their pets do not become part-time predators. Cats should be belled, well fed and kept indoors at night. They should be neutered or speyed as part of a strategy aimed at eliminating the feral cats that can prove so lethal to native birds. Gardens should be planted with native plants to provide much-needed food for a species that has seen much of its habitat replaced with farmland, and much of it ravaged by possums and rats. One cat that is stopped from killing kereru and one extra kowhai in the garden will not guarantee that New Zealand's forests will once again be filled with the sound of whirring wings. However, success will come from thousands of New Zealanders taking those and the other small steps that, together, add up to the giant leap that is needed to revive the kereru's flagging fortunes. |
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| Deleted User | Jan 12 2007, 01:16 AM Post #2 |
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Deleted User
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That's true about so many things concerning animal life and the environment. The individual feeling they can't make a difference. |
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9:18 PM Jul 11