Predator Free Pauanui

01/06/2026

From 12-19 June, over four evenings, two Predator Free Pauanui teams will be listening for kiwi. This will be our fourth year of listening from our set locations in Pāuanui, which helps build up good data year on year to add to the regional picture of kiwi locations, and monitoring in the Coromandel.

Have you ever heard the sound of a kiwi? Kiwi calls are distinctly divided into male and female cries, primarily used for locating each other and defending territory. Males produce a shrill, high-pitched whistle that sounds like "kiwi kiwi" (the origin of their name), while females emit a low, guttural, and raspy cry that is sometimes described as a harsh screech.

https://youtu.be/wmLMNk7WgMs?si=3e_ObZFRC75xaZx

When you don’t know why they’re screaming, but you gotta match the ...

30/05/2026

Possums are visual, social and promiscuous creatures. Throwing a party and catching possums have more in common than you might think!

Possums are visual, social and promiscuous creatures. Throwing a party and catching possums have more in common than you might think.

07/05/2026

Winter Pest Activity – As the colder months settle in, it’s easy to assume that pest activity drops off. While some pests may become less visible in winter, the reality is that many remain active and can cause significant damage to land and native bush during this time.

POSSUMS: Despite colder temperatures, possums remain highly active in winter, especially during clear nights. With fewer natural food sources available, they target orchards and shelter belts. Possums may also damage infrastructure by nesting in roofs and sheds. In forested areas, possums continue to browse on native trees, including totara and kōwhai, weakening trees during a time when growth is slow and recovery is limited.

STOATS: Stoats and other mustelids remain highly active hunters during winter. As small mammals and birds become less abundant, stoats roam wider areas in search of food. They pose a serious threat to poultry, game birds, and native wildlife, especially ground-nesting birds like pīwakawaka and weka. Their ability to kill multiple birds in a single attack means even a short-term presence can cause significant losses.

Pests don’t stop in winter, and neither do we! Join our community group dedicated to eradicating introduced wild predators across Pāuanui.

If you would like to support our group, this can be done financially; contributions are welcome to Predator Free Pāuanui 38-9024-0317783-00, donations are used for traps and lures, or by volunteering to monitor a trapline. Please contact [email protected] if you are interested.

07/05/2026

Members of the Predator Free Pauanui team recently attended a community workshop hosted by Predator Free Hauraki Coromandel Community Trust in Opoutere. These events are always good to meet up with other trapping groups, to exchange experiences and ideas, and to discuss relevant issues and developments in the Predator Free arena. This workshop had a particular focus on familiarity with AT220 traps (the self-resetting, automatic traps) which are very effective, but therefore comparatively expensive. We also talked about monitoring bird life and pest movements, which can be done with trail cameras. Predator Free Hauraki Coromandel Community Trust have acquired some trail cams which will be made available for hire by the groups they look after, so we are very keen to check these out later this year.

24/04/2026

Do you have rats or mice in your compost bin? Are they feasting on your food scraps and making your compost bin smell? Home compost bins typically have an open bottom which means rats and mice can easily burrow in and eat your food waste before it becomes compost 🐁🐁🐁

Check out the link below which will provide simple steps to predator proof your compost bin. And of course you can get in touch with us if you want to participate in trapping these pests on your property.

Do you have rats or mice in your compost bin? Wellington City Council offers these simple steps to predator-proof your compost bin.

26/03/2026

It's so satisfying to see how our community are working together to eradicate predators in our little piece of paradise. We now have over 200 traps throughout Pauanui, and we've captured over 1500 predators to date. Well done everyone; keep up the great work 🫶

07/02/2026

04/12/2025

At the end of November, Predator Free Pauanui celebrated its third birthday! Our TrapNZ statistics show that we now have 53 active members on the trapping app, looking after more than 200 traps, and helping to remove over 1,250 predators from our designated area. The support from the community is hugely inspiring, so thank you to all involved.

The traps we bought from MenzShed, using our Seagull Centre grant, were installed at locations along the dunes on the beachfront last month. These DOC200 traps target rats, mustelids and hedgehogs and are important particularly at this time of year to protect the nests and fledglings of dotterels and oystercatchers on the beach. A second phase will see mouse traps installed, to help prevent mice eating the seed heads of the plants in the restored dune areas. A big thank you to our dunes trapline monitors!

30/10/2025

The Variable Oystercatcher Tōrea-pango are often seen on Pauanui beach, with October being their nesting season. Read all about them below.

23/10/2025

Learn all about the Eastern Bar-tailed Godwit Kuaka who have recently made their way to New Zealand from Alaska! You may find them around the Pāuanui sand banks and estuaries.