Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu article and film on the Hutton’s shearwater/Kaikoura Titi.
Read article here >>
Hutton’s shearwater count – Population estimation
July 15, 2014
In 2002, an estimate of the population of Hutton’s shearwater was made by Graeme Taylor (Department of Conservation) and Paul Scofield (Canterbury Museum) using mark-recapture techniques. A team visited the Kowhai River colony where 2000 birds were spray painted red or yellow underneath. After the marking was finished, sightings were made from boats at sea or from the beach, of the ratio of coloured/non-coloured birds from which the estimates of the number of breeding birds were made. It had been 12 years since that work took place and the Trust repeated the exercise again in September 2014.
Four boats were used on the water, each with two teams consisting of an observer and a recorder. Each team made observations from a different side of the boat, to ensure birds were not counted twice as the boat moved slowly through the rafts of shearwaters sitting on the water. The count involved counting the number of birds sighted with red paint and the number of birds without paint.
Seabird Weekend – Kaikoura Star – April 2014
April 11, 2014
Download >> April 2014 Seabird weekend article – Kaikoura Star
Kaikoura’s first full weekend dedicated to seabirds and the science behind them has been hailed as a great success.
Seabirds, Shearwaters, Science & Sea Week
February 10, 2014
A full article on the ‘Kaikoura Seabirds, Shearwaters, Science and Sea Week’ is available here (see page 6-8): Birds of NZ – 2014
Saturday 5th April 2014 – Morning
9.00 am Maori Tours – 20% off
Please book direct on 03 3195567 or email info@maoritours.co.nz.
9.15 am Photography workshop
With birdlife photographer Peter Langlands, cost $25.
Meet in Dolphin Mary room at Encounter Kaikoura.
Book direct at langlands@xtra.co.nz or Ph: 027 4501 916
9.15 am Walk with local seabird advocates
Facilitated by Phil Bradfield and Friends of HSCT.
Meet at Point Kean, the Seal Colony car park.
9.30 am Albatross Encounter – 20% off
Book direct at www.encounterkaikoura.co.nz or Ph: 03 319 6777.
Saturday 5th April 2014 – Afternoon
12.45 pm Lectures and Presentations – Memorial Hall, Supper Room – Koha
Guest Speakers:
1.00 pm Chris P. Gaskin
Seabird Conservation Advocate. “Important Areas for New Zealand’s Seabirds: Kaikoura”.
1.30 pm Karen A.Baird
Seabird Conservation Advocate. “Threats to NZ seabirds globally and nationally”.
2.00 pm Graeme Taylor
Seabird Scientist from DoC. “Conservation of New Zealand’s threatened seabirds – new insights about our poorly known oceanic birds”.
2.30 pm Afternoon tea break
3.00 pm Paul Scofield
Senior Curator Vertebrates, Canterbury Museum. “The Albatross of the Chatham Islands: tourists to Kaikoura”.
3.30 pm Andrew Cutler
President Forest & Bird “What next for ocean governance: collaboration or crisis?”
Saturday 5th April 2014 – Evening
5.30 pm Movies, Mix and Mingle – Mayfair Theatre Theatre tickets: $25 – door sales may be limited Tickets available online at
www.huttonsshearwater.org.nz or from Kaikoura i-SITE.
Proceeds to Seaward Lions of Kaikoura and HSCT.
Drinks, Food and Social Hour.
Wine kindly sponsored by Peter Yealands Wines.
6.30 pm Opening: Brett Cowan of Takahanga Marae & DoC Kaikoura followed by HSCT spokesperson.
Guest Speakers:
Winston Gray Mayor of Kaikoura.
Colin King MP.
Ruud Kleinpaste Bugman, Birdman, Ecologist.
Movie: “The Mystery Bird” – Geoff Harrow
Registration and ticket purchase here >>
Sunday 6th April 2014 – Morning
6.45 am Haere Ra Nga Titi – Farewell to Hutton’s
Gather at South Bay Reserve
7.00 am
Prompt departure on Kaikoura Peninsula coastal track to Te Rae o Atiu / Kaikoura Peninsula colony.
If mobility is limited please advise by email in order to arrange transport to colony.
8.30 am
Breakfast at Memorial Hall supper room for bacon butties!
9.30 am Kaikoura Seabirds Guest Speakers
Phil Bradfield Hutton’s scientific update (HSCT Trustee & DoC representative).
Nicky McArthur Hutton’s education update (HSCT Trustee).
Lindsay Rowe, Jody Weir Little Penguins of Kaikoura (HSCT Trustee, Kaikoura Ocean Research Institute).
Te Korowai o Te Tai o Marokura Kaikoura Coastal Guardians Members update.
11.00 am
Ruud Kleinpaste Birdman, Bugman & Ecologist.
“The value of all living things”
11.30 am
Lou Sanson Director General of the Department of Conservation. “Community conservation – NZ last discovered really precious – why it really matters”.
Sunday 6th April 2014 – Afternoon
12.30 pm Free – Seaweek family music and activity event
Adjacent to Memorial Hall.
Run by Brett Cowan, DoC Kaikoura and Creation Care Study Programme.
Please RSVP to huttonssecretary@amuri.net to indicate your attendance to:
• Saturday morning walk
• Saturday afternoon presentations
• Saturday evening at the Mayfair Theatre – $25
• Sunday morning Farewell and breakfast
Bird of the Year 2013 – Vote for Hutton’s shearwater!
October 8, 2013
It’s Forest & Bird’s annual Bird Of The Year competition again!
Head over to the Bird of the Year website and vote for our special seabird, the endangered Hutton’s shearwater.
Hundreds of rafting Hutton’s shearwaters
September 13, 2013
Here is a photo taken on yesterdays Whale Watch Kaikoura tour, with hundreds of Hutton’s shearwaters rafted up at sea, patiently waiting for the snow to melt in their alpine colonies.
Photo: Jaegan Taylor, Whale Watch Kaikoura.
Welcome Home event – September 2013
September 7, 2013
Welcome Home Hutton’s shearwater/Kaikoura titi!
Our Hutton’s are coming home for the summer (from their over wintering in Australian coastal waters) for their 2013 breeding season.
Help us celebrate their return in true market style – we will be at the very popular ‘School Yard Market.’
Saturday 21 September 2013, 9am – 1pm, Kaikoura Primary School, The Esplanade.
Come and join in the festivities; there will be something for everyone, young and old. We look forward to seeing you there!
Successful Hutton’s Shearwater Chick Translocation
July 10, 2013
During March 2013 the developing colony at the Kaikoura Peninsula/Te Rae o Atiu was given a boost with the addition of a further 103 chicks translocated from the Kowhai River colony. The season’s crop of chicks were in excellent condition, with the birds selected for transfer having exceptional weights. The chicks were transferred from the mountain colony in two batches that were flown by helicopter directly to their new home. Here they were placed in their own artificial burrows and fed by hand with a sardine smoothie daily. The transfer went without a hitch and all 103 chicks fledged successfully. These young birds will in time provide an important boost to the number of breeding birds returning to the colony and will help ensure that the number of breeding birds continues to increase.
The chicks needed carefully daily attention, being weighed, measured and fed to ensure they were developing healthily and were in good body condition. For this we are grateful to the army of volunteers who gave up their time to assist. The chance to take part in this ground-breaking project was well taken up, and was summed up in one volunteer comment: ‘To have such an amazing project on our backdoor is truly an inspiration’.
Education Pack: A seabird at the top of the mountains
July 3, 2013
Download >> A seabird at the top of the mountains – DOC education pack
A Seabird At The Top Of The Mountains is the Department of Conservation education pack for Year 4, 5 and 6.
Goal: To ensure that each of our Kaikoura children are aware of, knowledgeable about and proud of the Hutton’s shearwater; Kaikoura being their last place on earth. That we ensure each student is exposed to a formal learning process in their school curriculum twice during their education, once at Year 6 level and once at Year 9 level.