Restoring Kapiti
Nature's Second Chance

Edited by Kerry Brown

Modern Kapiti Island is best known as a sanctuary for wildlife. It is one of New Zealand's longest and most exciting conservation stories, beginning in 1897. Projects here to eradicate possums and rats, and to increase or establish populations of endangered birds such as the little spotted kiwi, have put the country on the world map for conservation management and provided models to follow in other parts of the country. Animal pests are eradicated, weeds controlled, and the forests are returning. The island provides a home for a variety of endangered birds and other threatened fauna and flora. In the surrounding marine reserve, sea life is flourishing. This book is written by people who have contributed to the restoration of the island.

Contents

Part 1 Restoring Land and Sea

1 Kapiti Island Vegetation
2 Threatened Plantlife
3 Historical Eradications
4 Possum Eradication
5 Rat Eradication
6 Kapiti Marine Reserve

Part 2 Restoring Kapiti's Birds

7 Little Spotted Kiwi
8 Kaka
9 Hihi
10 Takahe
11 Kapiti Island Weka
12 North Island Saddleback
13 Kokako Recovery

Part 3 The Future and the Past

14 Biosecurity of Kapiti Island
15 Restoring Kapiti Island
16 Addressing the Enveloping Silence
17 Kapiti Memories

About the Editor

Kerry Brown works for the Department of Conservation in Nelson.

Publication details

ISBN 1 877276 66 9, paperback, 240 x 170 mm, paperback,128 pages, colour illustrated, $29.95
Conservation Guides
Release: November 2004