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DETERMINING ESCAPEMENT IN THE WHITEBAIT FISHERY OF NEW ZEALAND
Richard M.
Allibone and Jacques A. T. Boubée
National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, P. O. Box 11-115, Hamilton
Email: r.allibone@niwa.cri.nz
The New Zealand whitebait fishery is a popular spring–time recreational and traditional fishery for five species of galaxiids. This fishery includes four species considered threatened and the fishery as a whole has been considered to be in decline for at least fifty years. Whether the fishery is sustainable or not is as yet unknown. Escapement had not been determined and catch records are rarely kept. We used dye marked whitebait to assess the escapement of the migrating whitebait and to determine their movement rates through the whitebait fishing area. Releases of marked fish were made in two rivers and recaptures by whitebaiters were monitored. The escapement of marked fish was variable ranging from 98% to 55% and actual escapement rates are estimated to be lower. Recapture locations of the fish indicated that movements in the estuarine areas were complex and at least some fish were available for capture for several days before they ascended up river past the whitebaiters. Future work now seeks to extend the escapement studies to other rivers and streams of New Zealand. The techniques used are inexpensive and easy to apply allowing escapement assessment to be carried out by any interested group (whitebaiters, iwi, Department of Conservation) with the co-operation of the people whitebaiting.
THE WORK OF THE YELLOW-EYED PENGUIN TRUST
David Blair
Projects Officer, Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust, Box
5409, Dunedin
Email:
dblairs@xtra.co.nz
or yept@clear.net.nz
The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust is a charitable trust
founded in 1987 in response to an observed decline in the number of the
yellow-eyed penguin (Megadyptes antipodes)
on Te Wai Pounamu (South Island). The
Trust has responded to the need to sustain yellow-eyed penguins in their
natural range by protecting and enhancing habitats, by educating, and by
supporting research. The Trust has one full time and two part time employees,
and the financial base of it’s work is funded by one main sponsor, Mainland
Products, and by membership subscriptions and donations. The initiative is an example of the local,
bottom-up style of conservation effort that characterises ‘co-management’ that
is the focus of much of the discussion at this hui.
COUNTING YELLOW-EYED PENGUINS ON STEWART
ISLAND
David Blair
Projects Officer, Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust, Box
5409, Dunedin
Email:
dblairs@xtra.co.nz
or yept@clear.net.nz
The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust was founded in 1987 in
response to an observed decline in the number of the yellow-eyed penguin (Megadyptes antipodes). It agreed to fund a survey of the
yellow-eyed penguin on Rakiura/Stewart Island November/December 1999/2000.
Stage
one of the survey (1999) was considered to be a pilot scheme to ensure that the
methodology selected (nest searching) was suitable to census yellow-eyed
penguin on the whole of Rakiura. The
survey was carried out by experienced volunteers co-ordinated
by the Yellow-Eyed Penguin Trust’s Project Officer. The first stage of this
survey has been completed and found that there are alarmingly low numbers of
yellow-eyed penguin breeding pairs in the area surveyed. Frequent sightings of Fiordland crested
penguin (Eudyptes pachyrhynchus) both
individuals and colonies, were recorded.
With sponsorship from the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust, the remainder of
Rakiura will be searched this year. The
results of the census and assessment of nest search as a method of ascertaining
abundance will then be published.
Hopefully this census will be the basis for determining whether declines
are ongoing and what can be done about it.
DEMYSTIFYING THE RESOURCE MANAGEMENT ACT
Joy Burt
Christchurch
Community Law Centre, PO Box 2912, Christchurch
Email: rms@comlaw-chch.org.nz
Community Law Centres are non-profit organisations which work to reduce and remove barriers to the law by providing free legal services to those who find it difficult accessing legal help. They aim to make the law more accessible, clear, responsive, and credible. This is done through a range of advice and information services, community legal education, and advocacy on a wide range of legal issues. A specialist service, only offered at Christchurch Community Law Centre, relates to resource management.
The Resource Management Act (1991) affects all New Zealanders. We are all part of communities where progress is ever present through development, demolition, or change of use of existing facilities. If groups wish to actively conserve their local environment they need to be involved in the preparation of their territorial local authorities planning documents through the submission process. However, there is a gap in the availability of information about the RM Act. Many people do not feel competent to participate in the Act’s processes.
To fill this need in a cost effective manner, the Christchurch Community Law Centre has prepared a set of five booklets, with financial assistance from the Legal Services Board. The booklets inform people about the Act, and their opportunities to have a say. They are aimed at those who want a more detailed understanding of the legal processes without the expense of legal texts. Complex legislation is explained in a manner that people, without specialist knowledge of the law, can understand. The high-quality presentation is in a question-and-answer format, with lively sketches and cartoons, and plain English language, making the booklets user-friendly. They help provide the public with the skills and information necessary to participate effectively and to improve people’s practice and use of the Act. The booklets also explain difficult concepts in a succinct and easily readable way. People are walked through the legal processes and potential difficulties pointed out. Possible options to solve problems and sources of further information are indicated.
The booklets deal with different aspects of resource management in New Zealand. Booklets one and two deal specifically with the Resource Management Act (1991) and its processes and are relevant for both resource consent submitters and applicants. Booklet three focuses on land use legislation such as the Building Act, Public Works Act and Te Ture Whenua Mäori Act. The interaction with conservation legislation such as the Reserves Act, and Historic Places Act, is covered in booklet four. The fifth booklet deals with the Act and other natural resource topics, for example, mining, coastal management, fisheries, and forestry. Written by Sandra Preston in 1998, and peer reviewed by legal and planning professionals, the complete set has over 200 pages of easily digestible information.
The over-riding purpose of the Act, sustainable management of natural and physical resources, has to be reflected in local authority strategic planning documents. Plans do this through controlling effects of activities on the environment rather than the activities themselves. People in the community often have valuable local knowledge gained through experience and close contact with natural resources, not available to professional people. Therefore, if the purpose of the RM Act is to be successfully implemented, the participation of people and communities is necessary to ensure the quality of the environment is protected from adverse impacts of effects. Accordingly, there are a number of opportunities for public participation under the RM Act. For example, the opportunity to place submissions on any proposed policy statement; proposed district or city plan; or any publicly notified resource consent application (subject to s 94 RMA); and the opportunity for submitters to present their submission at a resource consent hearing. In practice, however, there are barriers preventing such participation from many sectors of the community as many people are still unaware of the Act, let alone how or when to get involved. This is where our booklets are of assistance.
Booklets are
available in sets of five and can be purchased for only $10 per set direct from
the Christchurch Community Law Centre, PO Box 2912, Christchurch, ph 03 366
6870, fax 03 366 6631 or e-mail to: rms@comlaw-chch.org.nz
TÏTÏ FEED PLANTS
AS WELL AS THEIR CHICKS
David Hawke1 and Jamie Newman2
1Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of
Technology Te Wänanga o Ötautahi
2Zoology Department Te Tari Whakäro Kararehe, University of Otago Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin
E-mail: HawkeD@cpit.ac.nz, jamie.newman@toroa.ac.nz
This research measured a form of nitrogen (the stable isotope nitrogen-15) to see if nitrogen in the vegetation in tïtï breeding areas reflects inputs by the birds. Vegetation samples were collected from breeding areas on Putauhinu and Ernest Island, along with surface soil samples. A sample from a non-breeding area on Putauhinu was also included. The results were compared with nitrogen-15 values from forest vegetation and soil samples from the North and South Islands of New Zealand. Enrichment of nitrogen-15 was extremely high in all vegetation from the Tïtï Islands, consistent with a large contribution from tïtï. Enrichment was also very high in soil from the breeding areas. The results from this preliminary investigation indicate that the Tïtï Islands are, therefore, a good example of an ecosystem where the birds depend on the islands for breeding, and the birds provide the island with nutrients to sustain the vegetation. In its turn, the vegetation retains the soil for tïtï to breed. Sustainable management of tïtï therefore could help safeguard the entire island ecosystem.
This
research is part of the Kia Mau Te Tïtï
Mo Ake Tönu Atu (“Keep the Tïtï Forever”) research project directed by the
kaitiaki of the tïtï, Rakiura Mäori. It
illustrates their interest in research to understand all aspects of the
ecological system in their care rather than a narrow focus on just the
harvest. The tupuna taught the need for
birders to protect and nurture the vegetation and the manu (birding
ground). This is another example of the
way complex ecological research is affirming and complementing the Traditional
Environmental Knowledge (Mätauranga) of Rakiura Mäori.
CHANGES IN TÏTÏ (PUFFINUS GRISEUS) CHICK PRODUCTION AND
HARVEST PRECEDE ENSO EVENTS
Philip O’B. Lyver1, Henrik Moller1 and Caryn Thompson2
1 Te Tari o Whakäro Kararehe Zoology Department, Te Whare Wänanga o
Otägo University of Otago, PO Box 56,
Dunedin.
2 Mathematics &
Statistics, Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo University
of Otago, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin
Email: Henrik.moller@stonebow.otago.ac.nz, LyverP@landcare.cri.nz
A large decline in tïtï abundance in the North pacific is corroborated by decreased harvest rates of a muttonbirder between 1979 and 1998 from Poutama Island. Between 1989 and 1998 harvest rates decreased by 47% in the nanao (burrow prospecting) period and 42% during the rama (night-capture of emerging chicks) period. The number of muttonbirders harvesting on Poutama Island decreased over the 20 years as chicks became scarcer, suggesting the harvest is potentially self-regulating. Chick abundance on Whenua Hou, an unharvested island also declined over the last decade, suggesting that the harvest was not a sufficient sole cause for the decline. Changes in the harvest rates and burrow occupancies between successive years significantly predicted the direction and intensity of the Southern Oscillation Index and sea-surface temperature anomalies in the following 12 months. Climate perturbations may affect food availability, predominant wind characteristics, direct and indirect fishery pressure and PCB/DDE redistribution within tïtï.
FINDINGS FROM THE
URBAN KERERÜ PROJECT, NORTH SHORE, AUCKLAND
Stephanie May
School of Environmental and Marine Sciences, University of Auckland, Tamaki
Private Bag 92019, Auckland
Email: sk.may@auckland.ac.nz
Research indicates that kererü numbers are declining in rural mainland areas, yet many residents in suburban areas frequently observe Kererü in their gardens and bush areas, sometimes in abundance (eight at one time in a medium sized guava tree). This apparent paradox promoted several local scientists on the North Shore, Auckland to undertake a scientific study of urban kererü to determine 1) whether urban parks, reserves and gardens are capable of supporting resident populations of kererü and 2) the importance of both exotic and fruiting plant species to kererü diet. Unlike most scientific research, this project was based in and “owned” by the community. Local residents (44 in total) voluntarily recorded behavioural observations between December 1997 and January 2000. Findings suggest that both exotic and native plant species provide kererü with a year around food supply, and that they are breeding successfully within the urban area.
SILNA LANDS AND
RESOURCES
Ken McAnergney
Chairman Rowallan Alton Mäori Incorporation; Secretary Rau Murihiku Whenua Mäori; P O Box 14-001, Christchurch Airport, Christchurch
Email: ken.mcanergney@cial.co.nz
In 1906 57,498 ha of land was granted to some 4,064 landless Mäori people under the South Island Landless Natives Act (SILNA). The land was granted in compensation for failure by the Crown to honour undertakings made at the time of Crown land purchases in the South Island. It was granted as an economic resource to named Mäori and their heirs and assigns forever. It was and is “absolutely inalienable”. Present day owners of land in the Murihiku region are in possession of an estimated 29,000 ha of virgin or cutover forest containing in excess of 3.5 million cubic meters of useable timber, which is capable of utilisation should the owners so choose. Successive Governments have and still are attempting to deprive present day owners of their birth right without compensation by attempting to make SILNA forests subject to the Forest Amendment Act 1993. Present day owners representatives Rau Murihiku Whenua Mäori wish to highlight SILNA issues and discuss the pros and cons of the pathway to sustainable management of their land and resources.
A Bi-cultural
Approach To Conservation
Michele Mills
School of Environmental and Marine Sciences, Auckland University, Tamaki, Private Bag 92019, Auckland
Email: m.mills@auckland.ac.nz
In recent years the perceived values of the environment
have changed, with an emerging ethical
concern for the sustainability and carrying capacity of natural ecosystems, and
for the maintenance of biological diversity and the conservation.
In the quest to attain such conservation values there has been a growing recognition of the need to combine current western scientific approaches of conservation to those more traditional approaches commonly practised by the worlds indigenous peoples.
In recognition of this, and in particular the value of mätauranga Mäori in contemporary conservation, the School of Environmental and Marine Sciences (SEMS) at the University of Auckland has established a number of research partnerships with local iwi.
Such partnerships are based on fostering a spirit of co-operation between local iwi and the School of Environmental and Marine Sciences. It is hoped that from such relations local iwi can gain greater social and educational empowerment, as well as on- the-job training in basic scientific practices. In return it is similarly hoped that the staff and students within SEMS gain an insight into and knowledge of mätauranga Mäori and modern resource management techniques, while also gaining a better understanding of the social and cultural environment within which their research is being conducted.
To date, SEMS has developed a number of relations with local iwi, and has developed very strong research based partnerships with Ngätiwai and Makaurau Marae. In both cases, these Mäori communities have provided an invaluable Mäori perspective on environmental and resource management. They have provided the School with “living” laboratories and have greatly assisted several students with their research.
The aim of this presentation is to highlight the importance of actively involving Mäori in conservation practices and in the education of contemporary conservation. Furthermore it is intended to encourage other iwi and tertiary institutions to develop similar relations so that they too can benefit from such partnerships.
A SURVEY OF PUBLIC
ATTITUDES ABOUT HARVEST OF NEW ZEALAND ANIMALS AND PLANTS
Henrik Moller
Te Tari o Whakäro Kararehe Department of Zoology, Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin
Email: henrik.moller@stonebow.otago.ac.nz
Abstract: A randomly selected group of 625 residents living in or near
Dunedin, a city in Southern New Zealand, were telephoned in May 1995 to ask
about their attitudes to the sustainable harvests of native and introduced
animals and plants. Sustainable
harvests of introduced species were very much more accepted than native
species. Within native species, people were much more agreeable to
sustainable harvest of fish than of insects or plants, but very much less in
favour of sustainable harvests of birds than any other group. Several
respondents agreed to harvests only if it could be assured that they would be
sustainable, or of particular species within a group were to be the ones
harvested. Few people opposed sustainable
harvests on ethical or moral grounds other than the core issue of
sustainability. Sample size for Mäori respondents was particularly small
so inference about attitudes of Mäori compared to non-Mäori is particularly
problematical. This illustrates the potential importance of the Foundation for
Research Science and Technology’s new initiative to fund increased sample sizes
of surveys so that a better characterisation of Mäori attitudes will be
possible in future. However, within
constraints of low statistical power from low sample sizes, the survey
suggested that ethnic groups within the Dunedin public differed little in their
attitudes to the sustainable harvests of native species. However Mäori
were more supportive of harvesting of introduced species in particular.
Mäori were overwhelmingly in favour of themselves having the authority to
decide whether or not harvests should go ahead. This right is
unilaterally opposed by 30-40% of non-Mäori, but the majority of these groups
would still accept Mäori deciding whether or not to harvest provided that
certain conditions were met. The Customary Use debate in Dunedin is
therefore probably more about who has the right to decide than what actually
will or will not be harvested. It would be potentially misleading to
infer attitudes about sustainable wildlife harvests throughout Aotearoa (New
Zealand) from the findings of this small survey of one predominantly urban and
Päkehä community.
TWO SQUID RINGS
AND ONE FISH PLEASE! TÏTÏ DIET STUDIES
Jamie Newman and Jane Kitson
Te
Tari o Whakäro Kararehe Department of
Zoology, Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo University
of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin
Email:
jamie.newman@toroa.ac.nz,
jane.kitson@xtra.co.nz
An
objective of the Kia Mau Te Tïtï Mo Ake
Tönu Atu research project is to describe the diet of tïtï (Puffinus griseus, sooty shearwaters) during
their breeding season. Diet studies can
focus our team’s attention on which food species could affect tïtï abundance,
or which fisheries might compete with the birds for food. Diet studies are also a tool for studying
seabird biology. For example, diet information tells us some things about where
the birds go to feed, how deep they go to get food and other aspects of their
behaviour while at sea - something we know relatively little about.
Usually
seabird diet studies involve dissecting the stomachs of dead adults, or
purging the stomach contents of live birds. We obtained our information from
looking at the stomach contents of chicks harvested by Rakiura Mäori. This allowed us to collect an unusually
large number of diet samples with minimum disturbance to the harvesters and
live birds.
We
found evidence that tïtï scavenge some larger prey rather than killing them
directly. Some adults must fly as far south as the cooler Antarctic waters to
feed because two birds had a species of krill which only exist in the Southern
ocean near the Antarctic Convergence. Most of the food was made up of squid and
small fish. We also found significant
differences in the diet of tïtï between years.
Changes in the availability of prey species may affect tïtï development
and survival, and probably cause the ‘kiaka’ (skinny chick) years.
Kia Mau te TÏtÏ Mo Ake TÖnu Atu: a research project to assess the
sustainabilty of a traditional harvest TÏtÏ by Rakiura MÄori
Rakiura Tïtï Islands Committee: Ronnie Bull (Chairperson),
Margaret Bragg, Stewart Bull, Jane Davis, Tane Davis, Carroll Fife, Shane
McManus, Lesley Rewi, Michael Skerrett and Morry Trow
P.O. Box 743, Invercargill.
The harvest of tïtï (Puffinus griseus; “muttonbirds”) on islands adjacent to Rakiura (Stewart Island) is one of the few remaining wildlife harvests managed entirely by Mäori. The harvest is of great social and cultural importance to Rakiura Tangata whenua and Mäori in general. The muttonbirders have requested this study to examine the sustainability of the harvest to ensure that the birds remain plentiful for their mokopuna. This study will test and refine population monitoring methods; measure whether current tïtï harvests are sustainable; estimate sustainable yield; determine what sets the limit of present tïtï harvest levels so impacts of any future changes to technologies or harvest practices can be predicted; evaluate potential impacts of climate change, fisheries bycatch and pollutants on tïtï populations; and record and compare the understanding of tïtï ecology, harvest impacts and management practices generated from Mätauranga and kaitiakitanga with that from ecological science. Under this program adults and chicks will be banded on both harvested and unharvested islands, the harvest observed, and survival of chicks and adults monitored. Harvest impacts will be estimated by computer simulation models. Trends in population on unharvested areas will be compared with trends on harvested sites to test the model’s predictions of population changes. Tïtï density on harvested and unharvested colonies will be compared for further rapid check of large-scale harvest impacts. Traditional Environmental Knowledge (Mätauranga) will be recorded using oral histories of experienced muttonbirders and questionnaires. Kaitiakitanga and Eurocentric conservation philosophies will be compared using records of discussions at hui of tïtï harvesters, environmental managers and conservation stakeholders. The research will be conducted by the University of Otago, but is directed by the Rakiura Tïtï Islands Committee. Click for a full description of the research project.
TAEWA MÄORI: THEIR
MANAGEMENT, AND COMMERCIAL VIABILITY
Nick Roskruge
Atiawa/Ngäti
Tama,
Massey
University, Private Bag, Palmerston North
Email:
N.Roskruge@massey.ac.nz
Background
Before
the primary European settlement of Aotearoa, around 1840, the taewa (riwai) was
a staple food crop of the Mäori. Taewa
is a collective noun referring to the ‘Mäori’ potato; a collection of varieties
of Solanum tuberosum now cultivated
by Mäori for at least 200 years. Mäori
acknowledge that some varieties arrived with early explorers, sealers and
whalers during the Eighteenth Century.
They also have traditions which relate the existence of taewa well
before this period. By the 1800’s,
taewa had become a commercial crop for Mäori playing an important role in their
introduction to European economics. The sustenance of the people was perhaps of
primary importance and the success or otherwise of staple foods such as taewa
impacted on the daily lives of Mäori prior to modern times.
Research project
During
the summers of 1998/99 and 1999/2000 crops of a range of taewa varieties have
been grown at Massey University, Palmerston North, to facilitate students to
undertake short-term research aimed at collecting data for a comparative
analysis of specific attributes. Little written record exists about taewa which
can be assigned to specific varieties. Already information on over 100 variety
names (some synonyms) has been collated. The resulting discussion has been
aimed at determining the history of taewa from a Mäori perspective and the
commercial viability of the crop. In
conjunction with the physical production of these crops, it has been important
to acknowledge the social aspects of such a food.
The
project was designed to continue over several years in order to make knowledge
about producing taewa more accessible and comparative to knowledge existing
with regard to present-day commercial potato varieties. Initially factors such as the timing of some
physiological stages (flowering, tuber set), numbers of tubers set, tuber
weights and harvest characteristics were considered. The most recent crop also included plant spacing/crop density
trials and a record of individual seed tuber weights relative to their harvest
yields. The exercise will have to be
completed over a number of seasons to consolidate the information gathered and
provide strong data for comparison with modern crops.
From
the 1998/99 trial results a research report has been written. This report was purposefully written to act
as a benchmark for future researchers with the project. It incorporated a review of historical
writings concerning taewa, a collation of information from several iwi and hapü
groups in regard to history and tikanga relative to taewa, and a review of the
social importance of horticulture to
Mäori as well as the discussion on data collected from the field. Results from the 1999/2000 crop are still
being analysed by the students involved and a report is expected by the end of
the year.
Because the results only covered one season it is
unwise to draw too many conclusions from them.
They provided a strong basis for further research, especially in regard
to physiological factors relative to the growth and yield of the crop. All the results compared the data collected
for two taewa varieties (tutaekuri &
karuparera) with two modern varieties (Ilam
hardy & red King Edward) grown
in a randomised complete block
trial. In simple terms, the results indicated
that the taewa varieties were the slowest to emerge after planting however,
they
began flowering relatively soon after emergence. There also appeared to be a correlation between the number of
stems per plant and the numbers of tubers set per each plant and therefore the
potential yield from each plant.
The
harvest yield data provided some interesting discussion points for further
research. The variability of tubers by
individual size was considerably higher for the taewa (64-68%) compared to the
modern varieties (42-44%). The taewa
also showed wide variability under a subjective assessment for skin and flesh
colour, shape and regularity of size.
The results may be a response to the seed selection process the modern
varieties had been subjected to but it also highlights the problems taewa would
currently have in meeting commercial grading standards.
Consumers
do not utilise much in the way of science to determine their preferences when
purchasing commodity products such as potatoes. The use of science to improve our understanding of taewa is
justified if producers are looking to achieve maximum economic results from
these crops. While modern or Western science
often contradicts Mäori science, there are aspects that could benefit
the potential of this crop.
Further research
Research
to investigate pathogenic infections latent in seed tubers is necessary, as is
the possibility of utilising technology to produce pathogen free seed. Many research questions also arise in regard
to agronomic factors associated with taewa crop production. The opportunity to incorporate traditional
Mäori management concepts and practices in an organic regime also offers
further research options. It would be
valuable to undertake consumer trials on their preferences for taewa based on
taste or sensory tests, cooking qualities or attributes and marketing
options. Lastly, a thorough
classification of varieties drawn from both oral and written sources as well as
an in-depth study on the tikanga or traditional management methods utilised on
taewa would be appropriate.
The
opportunity is there for Mäori to be involved in initiating any further study
into taewa. There are many unanswered
questions relating to the origins and status of taewa but the potential for
commercial exploitation is very apparent.
Mäori should initiate a programme through which they have over-riding
control of any research with taewa and investigate the commercial and economic
production of the crop. Their
relationship with taewa is secured through whakapapa and through an intimate
knowledge of their management requirements from centuries of production and
reliance. The future for taewa will be
both exciting and interesting for Mäori if they decide to take up the challenge
of transferring their skills in horticulture to produce this crop for potential
markets wherever they exist.
Acknowledgements
Nga
koroua me nga kuia o nga uri o Taranaki whänau.
Nga
kaitiaki o nga mära taewa
Institute
of Natural Resources & Pro Vice Chancellors Office, College of Sciences,
Massey
University, Palmerston North
DIPLOMA IN MÄORI
RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT, MASSEY UNIVERSITY
Nick Roskruge
Atiawa/Ngäti
Tama,
Massey
University, Private Bag, Palmerston North
Email:
N.Roskruge@massey.ac.nz
The
Diploma in Mäori Resource Development (Dip MäoriRes Dev) is an
interdisciplinary post-graduate programme of study offered by the Colleges of
Sciences, Business, and Humanities & Social Sciences at Massey University.
The
Diploma can be completed internally or extramurally in one year of full time
study or over two or more years part time.
Those students that satisfactorily complete the Diploma may then be able
to proceed directly to a Masterate programme.
The aim of the Diploma is to provide students with the practical and
conceptual skills to work with Mäori in the development of their natural
resources, especially in relation to land based industries. Applicants should have an undergraduate
degree although prior learning and experience can be taken into account and
students may be admitted directly into the programme. The Diploma provides a framework through which a wide range of
courses and topics can be taken. Beyond
the two core papers (Tino Rangatiratanga & Research Methodologies) students
can develop a programme which is best suited to their previous experience and
to future plans.
Projects already undertaken by students cover diverse areas such as:
• Management options for coastal Wähi Tapu in North Taranaki
(Ngäti Rahiri ki Taranaki Hapü)
• Horticulture options for Wai-o-Turi Pa, Patea
• Options for developing a Wähi Tapu database
• Tikanga associated with freshwater resources
• Nga mära o te wharekai ki te marae (Ngäti Ruaka)
• Development planning for Takirau marae (NgäRauru)
• Taewa Mäori - commercial viability & management
For further information
please contact the programme administrators:
Nick Roskruge, Kaitautoko
Mäori, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North (06)
356-9099/7723 Fax (06) 350-5620 email: N.Roskruge@massey.ac.nz
Tanira Kingi, Institute of
Natural Resources, College of Sciences, Massey University, Palmerston North,
Ph: (06) 350-4178, Fax: (06) 350-5680
email: T.Kingi@massey.ac.nz
COMMUNITY
INVOLVEMENT IN AN URBAN KERERÜ ASSESSMENT
James Russell
School of Environmental and Marine Science, University of Auckland, Tamaki, Private Bag 92019, Auckland
Email: j.russell@stat.auckland.ac.nz
Recently increased emphasis has been placed on bridging the communication and involvement gaps between scientists and the general public, in an attempt to prevent past alienation of groups who have had a significant stake-holding in research projects.
On Auckland’s North Shore such an attempt was made to involve the community in the collection of data for a large-scale assessment (2000+ observations) of urban kererü (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae), and to then communicate that data between the laymen and the scientists. The study aimed to use 44 local observers for collecting data to determine kererü densities, flight paths, local phenology and temporal variation in behaviour over a 2 year period (December 1997 to January 2000, ongoing). Specific logistical and analytical problems encountered included pseudo-replication of observations, zero-errors (confounding between non-response and no observations), the changing layout of the data sheet over the 2-year period, with problems abbreviating species names and problems with differentiating any changes in total counts between increased kererü activity (density) or increased observer effort. Because of these biases the data were most suited for inferring conclusions on variation in behavioural allocation by kererü over the study period. By refining the data collection methods it is possible to overcome most of these problems and from this guidelines for future studies in similar areas, including a more optimal data collection sheet, are made. In this context the Urban Kererü Study acts as a “pilot study” for future large-scale community involved research projects.
WEAVING PEOPLE TOGETHER
— THE HARAKEKE EVALUATION TRIAL
Sue Scheele1, Warwick Harris1, Cath Brown2, Kahu Te Kanawa2, Edna Pahewa2 and Margaret Murray2
1 Manaaki Whenua, PO Box 69, Lincoln. Email: ScheeleS@landcare.cri.nz, HarrisW@landcare.cri.nz
2 Te Röpü Raranga/Whatu o Aotearoa, c/o Toi Mäori, PO Box 9570, Wellington. Email: toimäori@xtra.co.nz
Harakeke (New Zealand flax or Phormium spp.) is the most important of the fibre plants used in traditional plaiting and weaving. Over generations, Mäori weavers have selected and cultivated forms of harakeke best suited for particular purposes.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that varieties that grow and perform well in some areas do not do so well in others. Since 1995, Manaaki Whenua scientists have been working in partnership with weavers to find out what effect soil and climate conditions have on the growth and weaving qualities of harakeke varieties.
The trial was originally proposed for three sites. The enthusiasm and active involvement of local weavers, marae, schools and tertiary education institutions saw the experimental plantings of 12 varieties established in 10 locations throughout New Zealand.
Measurements taken over 4 years have shown significant differences in the quantity of leaf material produced by the 12 varieties under diverse growing conditions.
Weavers from Te Röpü Raranga/Whatu o Aotearoa, the national association of Mäori weavers, used traditional techniques to systematically evaluate the quality of leaf samples from all the sites. When analysed, these data will tell us more about the characteristics of the varieties — that is, which ones give the greatest amount of material for the least effort of preparation; the fineness, strength, length and colour of muka (fibre); and the suitability of the different leaves for kete, whäriki, or piupiu.
When collated with the information on plant growth, we will know more about how to grow the very best selection of harakeke for particular purposes in any location. The trial sites themselves remain as a teaching resource and as a source of quality weaving material for local communities.
TOTALLY SHAGGED:
LANCE RICHDALE’S PIONEERING SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF TÏTÏ (SOOTY SHEARWATERS) ON
WHERO AND HOW KAWAU-MÄPUA (STEWART ISLAND SHAGS) DESTROYED IT
R. Paul. Scofield1, David J. Fletcher2 & Christopher J. R. Robertson3
1 Te Tari o Whakäro Kararehe Department of Zoology, Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin.
2 Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University
of Otago, Box 56, Dunedin
3 Science and Research Division, Department of Conservation, Box 10-420, Wellington
pscofield@cantmus.govt.nz, dfletcher@maths.otago.ac.nz, “CJR Robertson” <100244.1012@compuserve.com>
“He huruhuru te manu ka rere: he ao te rangi ka uhi ia.” (When a bird has feathers it can fly. When the clouds cover the sky it disappears).
In this poster we talk about the scientific work of Lance Richdale. He studied tïtï (sooty shearwater), tïtï-wainui (fairy prion) and küaka (diving-petrel) in the 1940’s and 1950’s on Whero, a small island to the north-east of Rakiura. We describe the changing fortunes of the tïtï on Whero and how the island was colonised by Kawau-mäpua Stewart Island Shags in the late 1950’s which lead to the extinct of the Tïtï population. We discuss how we were able to go back to Richdale's original notebooks and re-analyse his data using modern computer modelling techniques. We will now be able to compare the survival of adults in the 1940's and 50's with survival now. This will enable the Kia Mau Te Tïtï Mo Ake Tönu Atu (Keep the Tïtï Forever) program to gauge the health of the population now compared to earlier this century before fisheries bycatch of tïtï was a significant threat.
NGA TAONGA O NGA
TAMARIKI - OUR KIDS CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
Carol Scott and Jimmy Fyfe
23
Rhodes Tce, North East Valley, Dunedin
Email:
scotfyfe@es.co.nz
When
a child joins the Kiwi Conservation Club, they join 5000 other kids &
families and 900 schools in learning about the special places and creatures
that are part of our home Aotearoa - New Zealand, and how to care for them. It’s going to be their job in the future,
and we want them to feel as empowered to do it as possible.
Trips
are always family/whänau based. The openness of kids to having a go is a great
way of reaching out to their wider circles of contact... we oldies can meet ideas that are new, scary
or challenging hand-in-hand with our young ones, sometimes an easier task.
Members
get 4-5 KCC magazines a year, local newsletters and monthly trips. Sometimes landowners share their special
places, sometimes we visit reserves, and other times we look at the life and
diversity of places so familiar they’ve become invisible. Kids and families together explore and learn
new things, try hands-on stuff like planting, recycling or weeding, and have
fun along the way.
We
don’t claim to be the experts, or to have one easy answer. Instead we aim at sharing the wisdom of a
wide range of people on our trips, whom folk may not often get the chance to
meet. People from local Runaka, Otago
University, DoC, Otago Museum, Forest & Bird, Yellow-Eyed Penguin Trust,
DCC and Blueskin Bay Neighbourhood Biology and others have all shared their
expertise with us at times.
Dunedin
KCC Coordinators are: Carol Scott &
Jimmy Fyfe ph. 473 8414; Kristin Bracey & Chris Brown ph. 4739535. Dunedin mail to 23 Rhodes Tce, North East
Valley, Dunedin. To subscribe or get
info sheets write to "The KCC coordinator, Forest and Bird, PO Box 631 Wellington".
TELEMETRY REDUCES
COLONY ATTENDANCE BY TÏTÏ (PUFFINUS
GRISEUS)
Ilka
Söhle
Te Tari o Whakäro Kararehe Department of Zoology, Te Whare Wänanga o Otägo University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin
Email: sohil735@student.otago.ac.nz
The Kia Mau Te Tïtï Mo Ake Tönu Atu research project plans to use satellite telemetry to study where sooty shearwater (Puffinus griseus) feed and rest, which ocean currents may be important as food sources, and which fisheries pose a potential threat from bycatch. Before embarking on such a full-scale and expensive study it was considered important to investigate possible effects of these devices on the birds behaviour and condition. Therefore 24 imitation satellite transmitter (ISTs) were attached to breeding adults late in the 1998/99 breeding season at Taiaroa Head, Otago Peninsula. There was no evidence of any difference in mean weight, change in weight or measurements of adults, or breeding success of birds carrying ISTs compared with non-treatment birds. However the probability of attending the colony on a given night was reduced by an average 26% from early March to mid April in IST-carrying birds, but not at all amongst non-IST and non-handled birds. No difference in ensuing weight, size and emergence date of chicks was detected between treatment and control groups. The maximum recorded attachment duration for an IST using glue was 21 days. Harnesses may be needed for longer studies of foraging behaviour in the late breeding season. Satellite-tracking studies will overestimate normal foraging trip lengths and possibly underestimate the amount of food usually provided to chicks if reduced colony attendance detected in this study is a widespread problem.
SEX BIAS IN
BYCATCH RATES OF SOOTY SHEARWATERS IN NEW ZEALAND'S TRAWL FISHERIES - GENTLEMEN
BEFORE LADIES?
Sebastian Uhlmann, Paul Scofield, Henrik Moller and David
Fletcher
Te Whare Wänanga O Otago University of Otago, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand
Email: sebuh@hotmail.com, pscofield@cantmus.govt.nz, henrik.moller@stonebow.otago.ac.nz, dfletcher@maths.otago.ac.nz
Accidental
take of sooty shearwater (Puffinus
griseus) or tïtï, an abundant procellariiform of the South Pacific, has
been reported for various trawl fisheries in waters of the New Zealand
Exclusive Economic Zone. Fishery observer data were used to estimate that between
25 and 3,709 sooty shearwater (Puffinus griseus) were caught by 5,334 trawl
voyages in waters of the southeastern New Zealand Exclusive Economic Zone
between 1996-2000. Bycatch was extremely patchy and frequency distributions of
deaths per tow or trip did not conform to a poisson distribution. Eighty-eight
percent of 129 drowned sooty shearwaters caught by trawlers and returned to the
mainland were male (c2= 38, d.f.= 1, p< 0.05). The 95% binomial confidence interval on this percent is 77 - 92%
male. The estimated proportion of males in the catch per tow varied between
74-103%. A similar male bias in sex ratios of shearwaters caught in the North
Pacific fisheries has not been confirmed. No measures of sex ratio of the
shearwater population as a whole are available for comparison, but the bias
towards males very probably indicates that males are more susceptible to
bycatch. The difference could reflect a
biased sex ratio in the population but it is more likely that males are more
susceptible to bycatch because of sex differences in feeding zones. If bycatch
is a significant contributor to overall mortality of the species, a biased
mortality towards males will decrease reproductive success by disrupting pair
bonds and some females may be delayed in commencing reproduction or be forced
not to breed in some years. The impact of bycatch on the tïtï population may
therefore be greater than from the immediate death rate caused by drowning.
More research on the appropriate sample unit is needed to allow for better
estimation of overall bycatch totals and differential risk to age and sex
groups. This poster presentation discusses potential implications on population
trends and the long-term sustainability of the tïtï harvest as part of the Kia Mau Te Tïtï Mo Ake Tönu Atu research
project.
NGA KAITIAKI O NGA TAONGA O TE AO TUTURU (THE
GUARDIANS OF NATURAL HERITAGE AREAS)
Wäka Vercoe JP
No Ngäti Awa, c/o Environment BOP., PO Box 364, Whakatane
Email: waaka@ebop.govt.nz
He whakamarama tenei ki nga iwi 35 ki Te Moana a Toi
Te Huatahi, otira, he akiaki atu hoki ki a ratau katoa. Ko te kaupapa he inoi
atu kia kaha tatau katoa ki te tiaki i nga taonga tuturu, e kore ai e ngaro
poka noa. He huhua nga kaikörero ki tenei rohe e körero ngutu noa ana, kihai
noa he kiko ki o ratau körero. Ko etehi e pohehe noa ana he pukenga ratau,
engari nga ratau noa ratau ano i whakaeke ki era taumata. Ki te ata tirohia a
ratau körero ka kitea, e kuare noa ana, kahore noa e tautokotia ana e o ratau
hapü, iwi ranei. Kia tupato tatau ki era momo tangata, he whakaporearea noa iho
a ratau mahi ki a tatau. E maumahara hoki tatau katoa ki o tatau whakatipuranga
a muri iho nei.
This poster is to inform and encourage all the 35 tribes of the Bay of Plenty. It implores them to become proactive in the protection of natural heritage resources and thereby avoid indiscriminate and squanderous usage. Many spokespersons pay lip service to this issue whereas much of what they say lacks substance. Some imagine themselves to be pukenga or experts but many are self-appointed to this status. Careful scrutiny of their pronouncements indicate some misinformation, and lack of proper endorsement from their hapü or iwi. We need to be wary of such persons, for their actions are often counterproductive to us all. Also, we all need to be mindful of all our generations of the future.
SILNA FORESTS - AN
ENVIRONMENTALIST’S PERSPECTIVE
Sean
Weaver
66a Duncan Tce., Kilbirnie, Wellington.
Email: sean.weaver@vuw.ac.nz
The logging of the SILNA forests is a tragedy. The injustices that nature suffers are huge and at times irreversible. "Extinction is forever". For many environmentalists the injustices to nature are worse than injustices suffered by people. In most cases people are seen as the cause of the problem, and human selfishness gets the blame. Attempts are then made to put a stop to human actions that bring forests down. Campaigns are launched to change the law (to bring the SILNA lands under the Resource Management Act), to force humans to change their ways (banning clear-felling through amendments to the Forests Act), to bring peace to the earth. Nature, however, is not the only one to be on the receiving end of injustice, because of course people know what suffering is, and there are many people whose own experience of injustice is all too vivid.
The injustices suffered by SILNA owners is also a tragedy. These injustices, suffered for well over a century, put SILNA owners into a position where (for some) logging is the only option if they are to prosper as a people from the fruits of a land they have lived on for centuries - and a resource base they were promised in 1906. To seek prosperity is hardly selfish. After all, many environmentalists come from privileged backgrounds where the existence of human suffering is something foreign, something to be read about in books. It is not surprising then, that comfortable environmentalists don't fully comprehend stories of social injustice, stories of what it feels like to suffer the loss of ones lands and ones means of existence. Seeing this ignorance can become a source of frustration, sadness and anger: "Why don't they understand?" "Why won't they listen?" "If they knew the history of our situation, surely the facts would simply speak for themselves?" Most people are not ignorant on purpose. A lack of understanding is often simply the product of peoples' circumstances - where a lack of experience of social injustice makes it difficult to comprehend. After all, if one has never been colonised, one can never know what it feels like.
Resolving the conflict over the SILNA forests will require the making of political friendships - and perhaps personal friendships too. And yet we cannot win friends by abusing each other. If both sides of this conflict can come to understand each other, a lot of good will surely flow. This is beginning to happen. There are environmentalists who recognise that conserving biological diversity on SILNA lands first requires the delivery of justice to SILNA owners. There are SILNA owners who recognise that many environmentalists have their hearts in the right place. These are two parts of a powerful seed. If nurtured it could grow into something special - something like a partnership. And a partnership between Tangata Whenua and open-minded Tau Iwi could be a winning formula, for SILNA justice and beyond.
THE INTERNATIONAL
CENTRE FOR NATURE CONSERVATION, PUMANAWA TAIAO TIAKINA
Kerry-Jayne Wilson
Ecology
and Entomology Group and the International Centre for Nature Conservation, P.O.
Box 84, Lincoln University, Canterbury
Email:
Wilsok@Lincoln.ac.nz
The Lincoln University, International Centre for
Nature Conservation was formed in 1999 with a mission statement “To promote the
conservation of biological diversity and other elements of nature, its
sustainable use, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out
of its utilisation through education, training and advocacy.” The centre is
interdisciplinary and draws on staff whose expertise is in the biological
sciences, resource management, economics and the human sciences. The centre’s
objectives are to promote the profile of nature conservation, to provide
opportunities for education, skill development for conservation practitioners,
to conduct research and to develop national and international linkages in
nature conservation. Joint programmes have been initiated with the Sarawak
Biodiversity Centre. The Centre oversees the Waterwatch – Kaitiaki Wai
Programme that currently provides water quality monitoring kits to Canterbury
schools and this will soon be extended to other parts of the South Island. The
centre has an active urban ecology programme and will be hosting a two-day
Urban Ecology symposium later this year. We are currently developing an annual
series of think-tank type forums exploring interdisciplinary issues in nature
conservation. In 2001 the International Centre for Nature Conservation will
offer for the first time two graduate scholarships.