LAST POST. IN PRAISE OF TUATEAWA.

A year has passed since we sold our Bach in Tuateawa.  Surprisingly, after nearly forty years, there are still things undone and unseen. A Maori carving on the shore, often sought and never found. More Maori carvings, dendroglyphs, on cabbage trees in the Colville region. The list is quite a large one. It is the measure of an interesting area that there are always new things within it to be discovered!
There are also many things to remember. All Tuateawans are familiar with the mason bee. It makes muddy cavities within which it places paralysed black spiders. A larder for it's developing young. Annoying when the locations chosen happen to be folds in your curtains. Totally explosive when the unfortunate spider is entombed within the entrails of your TV!

Sometimes you see something, the significance of which eludes you for many years. It is a while back now, late one afternoon during a southerly storm in May. Tens of thousands of mutton birds, all travelling in the same direction came in across the sea from the south. They passed below our bach window for hour after hour and there seemed to be no end to them. Some years later we realised that we had seen the northern  mutton bird migration heading for summer of the coast of California. They are known to move up the east coast of NZ. from the deep south. Maybe they were heading over the Peninsula at Tuateawa  and on into the Firth of Thames.







Birds are such a part of Tuateawa. Tuis are ever present and particularly aggressive in the summer months. Such that our resident heavy was known as Tui the Terminator, capable of a complete barrel roll in pursuit of any bird that challenged his supremacy.

Now we are getting to know many more places, but none of them as well. Tuateawa is our reference point and it stands up remarkably well to all comparisons. Early this summer we climbed Whanake and then, within a week, also clambered up Mt. Te Aroha.

Te Aroha is a majestic maunga and dominates the Waikato. It has many things that Whanake lacks. A goblin forest near the summit with the trees heavily festooned with lichen. An alpine herb field, remnant of the last ice age. It is so much higher than Whanake, has some magnificent vegetation, but, in some ways it is lesser.

There are far fewer birds, it's slopes are dotted with pines and eucalypts and many of the emergent trees are dead. It is easy to see why, possum droppings are abundant, and only the less succulent plant seedlings are found on the forest floor.

Tuateawa has a much higher level of pest control both from within the community and from other national and local bodies. The difference shows. Mt Te Aroha does receive a considerable spend. The old Tui Mine tailing dam is costing millions to stabilise. D.O.C. also protects the relics of the mining era on the mountain and some significant stands of rata. There just isn't enough money to protect everything.

More recently we spent some time on Gt. Barrier Island, just of the tip of the Coromandel Peninsula.

It has similar magnificent scenery and it's own iconic species, some of which the Coromandel shares, like the kaka and brown teal to mention a couple.

Given that GBI has no possums, hedgehogs or mustelids you would expect the bird life to be thriving but it is not so. It is generally acknowledged that this is due to the populations of rats and feral cats. There is a notable community response to this situation. Currently there is a smallish predator proof fenced enclosure at one end of the island, a predator free offshore island nearby and another area of predator control at the other end of the island. The later has seen the reintroduced robin increase and move out of it's initial area. Moves are afoot to make the whole island rat free, a massive undertaking and one needing the whole community to be of like mind.
When we look at community and Govt. conservation initiatives very few of them have been running for a long time. They are really just in an early trial stage. Governance issues within the world leading Maungatautari Project illustrate the concerns that some have expressed over the long term viability of many conservation programmes. Conservation isn't something that can be stopped. It has to be for ever. Less Govt. money is going DOC's way these days and legislative changes are not always favourable to the environment. The onus is increasingly falling on local groups. On the positive side there seems to be a ground swell of public opinion in favour of the environment. So many communities are now not only trying to conserve what they have but also attempting to bring back what they have lost. Habitat Tuateawa is one of the longest running environmental groups in the country. It has helped to bring about remarkable changes in the area. It is this very fact that will help it to continue long into the future.

THERE ARE TUIS IN OUR TREE!

There are tuis in our tree, doing all the things that tuis do. Singing, chasing, seeming to soar off into outer space before giving up on the idea and returning to earth once more. So, what is so special? In Tuateawa, not a thing. However our tree is in Hamilton, which, until the Halo Project, saw very few tuis and then only as brief visitors.

Pirongia from Hamilton

There is a developing conservation awareness in Hamilton which probably relates to the small amount of indigenous environment that we have. Just over the hill a major long term effort is underway to reconstruct an entire lost ecosystem. Much further afield, another huge undertaking, the predator proof fencing and maintenance of an entire maunga, Maungatautari.

Maungatautari tomtit

Maungatautari yellow fronted karakariki

It has not always been this way. In the early seventies, like many others, we built our first modest house. It was made largely of native timber, heart rimu and totara. Native timber was logged in those days so we played our part in the clear felling of an ancient N.I. forest and the destruction of all the organisms that lived within it. The pioneer ethic was stronger in those days and the balance between exploitation and conservation not so evident.

Waikato basin from Maungakawa "halo site"

Native forest is now protected from the logging industry but the change was too late for the Waikato. Only 4% of natural endemic vegetation remains. An huge proportion of the rest is covered in a pastoral ecosystem transplanted from Europe and elsewhere. The wealth that this agribusiness creates contributes, in large part, to the economic well being of NZ. I am sure that many of the baches in the environmentally more favoured Coromandel have been funded from such a source.

So, back to the Halo Project. Hamilton does present a much better environment for tuis than the surrounding, intensively managed countryside. The older parts of Hamilton are well treed, mostly exotics rather than natives, but these are acceptable to a number of native bird species. In some ways it is superior to Tuateawa in that the number of rats, possums and mustelids is low, although there are cats in very high density.
 I have nothing but praise for the work of all the cooperating agencies and volunteer workers who, seeing the possibilities for Hamilton, put the Halo Project into operation. Some of those precious remaining areas of natural vegetation had their tui populations boosted through various conservation activities. It seems that tui will seek food as far as 20km. from home and many of them made the journey to Hamilton. They are now found in numbers in developed suburban areas and parks over Hamilton. There are some pairs and there is a great possibility of a resident breeding population becoming established.
Having few sizeable natural environments in the Waikato is partially compensated for by the lack of anti environmental activists.  Conservation proceeds in a spirit of cooperation. The Robinsons contribute a little bit of negativity, mainly aimed at Environment Waikato but to little effect.
Generalisation is something to be avoided. However I believe it is fair to say that, where there is a largely intact environment there is a lesser environmental awareness and also a greater need to exploit the environment. High unemployment and low wages are more often found in such situations. Conservation activities which reduce the yield of possum fur, the halt to the logging of native timber, these all produce hardship for local people. Loss of jobs and the depression of the local economy inevitably build anti Govt. sentiment, particularly to those agencies of the local and national Govt. that are active in the area.
On the West Coast, when logging of native timber ceased it was natural that the Dept of Conservation would not be flavour of the week! The Govt. of the time did however recognise the consequences of the logging ban and provided seed money to develop other aspects of the local economy. Over time this  proved to be a success.
In the Upper Coromandel there is significant anti conservation sentiment. It is ostensibly concentrated around the use of the conservation tool 1080. In reality the use of this compound does reduce the level of possums to a point where it is not possible to make a living from their fur. The anti conservation stance is understandable when conservation activity has such a financial impact on some individuals. However it is time to move on. The Westcoasters did and found new, less physically demanding, more financially rewarding ways of making a living. The Upper Coromandel is in a similar situation and in need of some Govt. capital to help it make the transition.

It is ironic that the anti conservation lobby probably destroyed the best opportunity for a prosperous future for the Upper Coromandel when they stymied the Peninsula Pestproof Fence at the last moment. Are views so entrenched that it could not be revisited? The region is really a National Park in waiting. It is scenically dramatic, has a diverse array of environments, great biodiversity and organisms found no where else in the world. Ecotourism is the coming thing internationally. Auckland is a major tourist hub and it is a short time by ferry from there to a landing spot like Paritu. What better ecoguide than a chap who is really familiar with the bush?
 Change is overdue. It is time for the Upper Coromandel to catch up with the rest of the world. In it's own unique way of course. The way involves cooperation rather than confrontation. It worked in the Waikato and it can work in the Coromandel.

WAIKAWAU: A FEW OF THE BIRDS.

In the past shags must have been a notable feature of Waikawau as the name roughly translates, for a non-Maori speaker, as Shag Water. Pied Shags are still to be found here today but not in the numbers the name might suggest.

Southern black backed gull

Red billed gull

Caspian tern

But Waikawau will have seen a fair number of changes since first it was named. There is however a great variety of bird life to be found.

NZ pipit

The dunes and pastures are host to a number of species. Some are native to NZ, others introduced by man and some have recently arrived from Australia.

The White Faced Heron first bred in NZ in 1941.

The very noisy Spur Winged Plover only made it to the N.I. in 1973. Both birds are now very common through most of NZ.
Out to sea there are birds in great numbers. They become very obvious when they congregate to feed over a "boil up" of fish.

White fronted terns

The Gannets and White Fronted Terns are easy to spot. Amongst them though are the less visible darker coloured Mutton  Birds. Sometimes you can also see Skua. These are birds that have to steal their food as they cannot catch it. They are usually seen at a great distance but are identifiable by their behaviour. Skuas cooperate in the aerial pursuit of a single bird, often a tern, until it is so hassled it has to regurgitate its catch.
On the beach other birds are found.

The Variable Oystercatcher .

and the endangered N.Z. Dotterel both nest here.

In the winter a cousin of the latter, the Banded Dotterel can also be found in groups of a dozen or so.

The best place to look for these is in the estuary region, also home of Pied Stilts.

Waikawau is always a great place to be and its birds make it just that little bit more special.

Bar-tailed godwits

WAIKAWAU: KAWETOTO REEF BY WAY OF WAIMANU RD.

Local kauri conservation activity started " way back when" on the Coromandel. It is hard to be more precise as the Govt. Dept. involved is no longer in existence. What it did was to plant quite a few areas in young kauri as a token replacement for the many removed in the past. Just where the plantings happened is a bit of a mystery as the records seem to have been lost or misplaced. However, should you see a hillside of young kauri rickers, all of about the same size, this could be a clue. Climbing out of Kennedy Bay there is an area that could fit the bill. If they are all planted in rows then I guess it would be an absolute certainty!

In this millennium we have a non Govt. group continuing the good work. Kauri 2000 continue to plant young kauri on public land. This sign on Whangapoua Hill tells of their work.

Should you have some guests visiting who are interested in the environment, a trip to Kawetoto Reef from Tuateawa will take you past, and through, a whole group of areas of real interest. You can see the activities of Kauri 2000 on the slopes just beyond Pump Paddock, Waikawau farm park. The kauri are small and struggling a little against the paspalum and kikuyu grass, but, given time and attention they will become magnificent.

A couple or so km. along, the road crosses the Waikawau Stream. It is worth a pause by the bridge. You could be lucky as this is one of the few places in the world that you might see Brown Teal. The activities of The Moehau Environment Group have played a big part in boosting the numbers of this endangered species.
They are also active in conserving the Matamataharakeke wetland and the estuary region that you pass through on the way to Waimanu Rd. The wetland, like much of the Coromandel, has had it's period of exploitation. Flax was harvested for fibre and shipped to Europe for the manufacture of rope but, over time, proved to be prone to decay which was a lucky break for the wetlands of NZ. These wetlands are home to a number of unique and mostly secretive birds, the fernbird and the bittern  amongst them. If you move down Waimanu Rd there is a chance of seeing a bittern, particularly in the winter months. Invisible in the reeds This improbable appearing bird becomes very obvious when it strays into the paddock near the bridge. The Waikawau River is tidal at the bridge, good kids fishing for Yellow Eyed Mullet and you might just see an White Heron if you are very lucky!

Waimanu Rd continues, over the bridge, passing through paddocks and shortly reaches the carpark alongside the estuary. You start your trip to the beach by climbing over the gate to the left.

The track takes you over the hill, through regenerating farmland and some magnificent forest remnants and coastal vistas.

At one point the track has been cut through an old Maori midden.

After a short walk you emerge onto the beach at the back of a dune system. The going here can be a little soggy!

The Kawetoto Reef is full of life. It is home to a very ancient shellfish the Lampshell and to many other creatures including octopus.

On the beach there are often Spirula shells, common in NZ. They could have travelled a long way to end up on Waikawau as they are thought to be tropical. Live ones are very seldom found. If you pick one of these up you are holding the remains of a creature that can live 1000m. below the surface. The shell is the flotation device of a small (3-4cm.) squid which feeds on ocean plankton.
At most states of the tide you can walk back to the carpark via the estuary and maybe pick up a feed of shellfish on the way!

WAIKAWAU. SOME DUNE PLANTS.

Wandering along the drift line can be very rewarding. You can never be sure what treasure might have been cast up by the sea! It  also happens to be one of the most formidable locations for living things on the planet. It is an interface between two major environments. Mostly it is land, but, sometimes, it becomes the sea. Only a few organisms manage to live in such changeable conditions.

Above the high tide mark conditions are only a little less harsh. The first plant you encounter, at the foot of the dunes, is the sea stock. It throngs with bees when it is in flower. Later it's seeds become the food for the introduced greenfinch.

Pingao

Then the native sand binders, Spinifex and Pingao appear holding and building the protective fore dunes. The seed head of Spinifex cartwheeling along the beach in summer is a familiar sight.

Spinifex

The dunes favours those plants that have a particular edge. Some are very good at conserving water.

Sea Convolvulus

Some, like the sea convulvulus manage to get through their life cycle and produce seed before the harsh summer arrives.

Bush lupin

The bush lupin has two advantages at least. It has deep roots so water is less of a problem. In a low nitrogen environment it also gets extra nitrogen from the air.

The catchfly, with its sticky leaves and stems also supplements its mineral requirements from the insects which become glued to it.

Getting a free ride is the parasitic broomrape. It has no chlorophyll but gets it's food from the roots of other plants.

Further back from the sea the plant cover becomes more complete and the sand binders more infrequent. Eventually larger plants, more bush like,start to appear and the sand binders are nowhere to be found.