Whale Stranding Hui

On Saturday, I went to Orimupiko Marae, south of Opunake, to attend a Whale Stranding Hui. Why a Whale Stranding Hui? Because in New Zealand it is important that not only are the needs of scientists acknowledged when a whale is stranded, but it is also important for cultural and historical perspectives to be taken into account.

Whales play a large part in Maori mythology, stories and culture. In the past they have been an important source of food, and their bones and teeth were enormously valued for decorative purposes, but also practical purposes.

Scientists can gain enormous knowledge from studying whales that have been stranded - size, age, diet, cause of death, genetics and population information. When there is a positive relationship between iwi and scientists, it is possible for all needs to be met.

It was a fascinating hui, with speakers from DOC and various iwi, all prepared to share their expertise. It was a really good example of how science can work effectively alongside culture, with each paying respect to the other.

Mayor Island - Tuhua

Last night I walked off Mt Taranaki, had a quick shower, and drove to Tauranga. This morning I met Kim at the Tauranga Marina to travel out to Tuhua (Mayor Island) with staff from the Bay Of Plenty Polytech on their launch Okiwi. They were promoting their courses in marine and environmental studies to mainly secondary educators, and we were fortunate enough to be able to hitch along with them.
It was a glorious day, with calm seas, and in no time we were out at the island. Tuhua is a volcano, with a large crater across the middle of the island. This volcano was underwater, and has been uplifted over the years. It is distinctive in that it has large bands of obsidian or volcanic glass in the cliffs. Maori used obsidian for tools such as knives, and Mayor Island obsidian has been found throughout the country, and in some of the Pacific Islands. We climbed to the highest peak, and were rewarded with great views of the crater, and its lakes. At the end of the day some of us got the opportunity to snorkel in beautiful clear water, in areas the Polytech uses for its marine studies. It was a really good opportunity to see where some of the children that we teach may end up following their science dream.

Slugs and Snails

We awoke the next morning to freezing cold frost, and a beautiful day once again. I couldn't walk past this tarn without taking a photo. Today I was to be working with Donna, mapping Powelliphanta snail populations. This involved getting down and dirty, and searching through the decaying leaf matter underneath various grass species. It wasn't for the faint hearted with spiders, slugs, insects and giant native worms to be found! Snail populations on Mount Taranaki are fairly small and isolated, probably because of the effects of eruptions and ashfalls over the last 1000 years or so. In science, often it is just as important knowing what is not present, as well as what is present.

This day we did not find any Powelliphanta but we did find lots of other critters, a smaller snail variety, and this slug which carries a little shell on its back. Again, it was an opportunity to see "what lies beneath". Unfortunately, with little to carry beyond my own pack this time, I had to walk out, rather than catch a scenic flight!

Up, up and away!

People pay money for scenic helicopter rides - today I got one for free! DOC uses helicopters for access to difficult areas when large loads are required, and carrying them in is not practicable. Three DOC staff and myself flew into the Pouakai Hut on Mt Taranaki to do some pest work, and also some habitat mapping. On such a beautiful morning the flight in was exhilarating, and the Pouakai Hut has some amazing views over the Taranaki ring plain. This first day I was to spend with Dean, pegging down stoat boxes on about 12km of tracks. We were also collecting evidence of the effectiveness of the recent 1080 operation, and any possible effects on the native wildlife. One species that is vulnerable to 1080 is the fernbird, a fairly secretive bird. It had been thought that numbers could possibly have been affected by the poison. This was dispelled when Dean told me he had never heard so many fernbirds, over such a wide range. We encountered many other birds including tui, tomtits and bellbirds, and more pleasingly, none of the traps had any rats or stoats in them.

We capped off a great day in the field with a night time session playing kiwi calls to try and elicit responses. Although we didn't hear any, apparently it doesn't mean they were not there - apparently this is more effective when the weather is not so good, and the kiwi can't hear us humans crashing around in the bush!

Not all glamour!

Just to show you that this fellowship is NOT all glamour, three times this last few weeks Callum and I have been called on to dispose of dead New Zealand fur seals. Quite how these ones have died is a mystery. Sometimes they have obvious fatal wounds, from boats or sharks, but more often there is little visible cause. Often when there has been rough weather more seals seem to die. They are also (definitely in this case) often quite decomposed, and there is very little worse than a rotten seal! This particular seal had a tag on its flipper, and I am looking forward to finding out more about it!

Callum and I rolled this one onto a tarpaulin, and then onto the ute, and headed to a farm on Frankley Road, where it was disposed of in an offal pit. Usually dead seals and dolphins are left to rot where they are washed up, but if they are in very public areas they are removed. The New Zealand fur seal has gone from the brink of extinction to being a common sight around the New Zealand coast.