Friends of Tawa Bush Reserves

06/06/2026

This Sunday! See you there :)

Check out our previous posts for more details!

27/05/2026

You've probably seen the local news... kākā in Tawa!!!

Yes, it's very cool!

Kākā have been in Tawa for the last few years!
It's a huge win for our community, and we absolutely love hearing and seeing them around.

Backyard trapping is helping bring back endemic manu, like kākā 💚 so keep trapping pests!

Need a trap, let us know!

23/04/2026

LOST DOG - seen in the Forest of Tawa today. Does anyone know of the owner?

With Kiwi nearby please keep your dog on a lead, in our reserves.

18/04/2026

That “rotting” log? It’s a nursery.

Dead wood supports entire ecosystems—fungi, beetles, amphibians, and birds all depend on it.

When it’s removed for a cleaner look, you’re also removing shelter, food, and protection.

A tidy garden can quickly become a lifeless one.

11/04/2026

02/04/2026

A regular visitor to our bush reserves, over the summer months is the shining cuckoo (Pīpīwharauroa)

This photo finds it seeking kowhai moth caterpillars (Uresiphita polygonalis) in the open foliage of a kowhai tree. They are one of the few New Zealand birds recorded eating monarch butterfly caterpillars and taking red admiral butterfly caterpillars from tree nettle.

It is more often heard with its a distinctive whistling call. But difficult to spot amongst the foliage as it's a small and cryptically-coloured bird.

A danger for the shining cuckoo is introduced predators such as rats and possums. They often fall prey to cats while foraging for insects.

Shining cuckoos are brood parasites, laying their eggs singly in nests of grey warblers. Eggs are laid mostly in November, after which the adult cuckoos take no further part in breeding. Young cuckoos are dependent on their foster-parents for several weeks after fledging.

More information on the shining cuckoo can be found on our website https://tawabush.org.nz/tawa-native-bush-reserve-birds/

20/02/2026

Trust everyone survived the storm last weekend.

Forests are always full of natural hazards, hanging trees that could fall at any time are always present, but right now there is a lot more than usual. And there is a lot of debris on the tracks also, leaf litter, twigs and branches little and large, strewn everywhere.

So if you are going in the forests, as well as watching where you are walking, please keep eyes UP, keep alert for trees and large branches that are just hanging by a thread. We would strongly advise that you keep clear of the forest should the wind come back up, there's still plenty of material waiting to fall.

Our local pests also got disrupted from their homes by the storm and a good trap haul has been had this week. If you've got a backyard trap please don't forget to keep it loaded with fresh lure and report any catches to Pest Free Tawa

15/02/2026

Last Saturday, 5 of our members, potted up a total of 216 totara and mingimingi.

These will grown on for bit longer - the totara will take another year, at least-and eventually planted during our winter planting session.

Let us know if you'd like to help out with the nursery team.

Thanks for the cake at morning tea, Jo

11/02/2026

Have you notice this new signage in the western Tawa reserves.

Thanks McNulty - Takapū/Northern Councillor for pushing along this signage.

Kiwi signage is now up in Redwood Bush Reserve!

I was asked over the Christmas Break what the plans were to warn dog owners given Kiwi are starting to visit the area. I requested some signage from our staff and now they're here.

It's so incredibly exciting to see this rewilding of Pōneke happen in my lifetime ❤️

📷: Sheryl Rule

29/12/2025

Same goes for our Tawa eels. Look out for them.

Please don’t feed the eels. Nature provides all they need. Bread and other human stuff can make them sick – and recently we’ve noticed one or two not looking so good. Reafforestation of Ōtari’s Kaiwharawhara valley has helped restore a healthy habitat for these tuna. They live here for 60, maybe 70 years, before making their amazing migration to deep in the Pacific Ocean, somewhere around Tonga or Fiji. Exactly where remains a mystery, let's help them get a good start for their journey!