Naturally West: The toutouwai explores life beyond the Ark

I mentioned, in the November Fringe, the more common occurrence of kākā in the Karekare area, as well as more fleeting sightings around Tītīrangi and other western suburbs during 2019.

It seems that the North Island black robin, or toutouwai, has also discovered Karekare, one having been spotted on Lone Kauri Road in December, some distance from his original home at Cascade Kauri Park in Te Henga. They were reintroduced to the mainland in two translocations from Mokoia Island and Pureora Forest, 15 and 10 years ago respectively. In 2005 my two boys (then aged 7 and 11) released one of the original 53 Mokoia robins at the Ark in the Park sanctuary, signalling a significant return of the species to the Waitâkere Ranges where they had been extinct since the early 1900s.

Toutouwai, with a conservation status of At Risk – Declining, is a beautiful little bird weighing only around 35 grams and similar to a sparrow in size. I have more often encountered the South Island species. Its curiosity and interest in foraging for food at ground level will lure them within an arm’s length if you scratch or tap on the ground, though they also forage in and around trees. They are one of a few endemic bird species that appear to enjoy the close presence of humans, making them a tourist favourite. Their groundbased curiosity and trusting nature also makes them vulnerable and the Department of Conservation suggests that, without predator control, there is only a 20% chance of them breeding successfully. Many, including the brooding females, fall victim in their nests at night to possums, rats and stoats.

The male toutouwai, particularly the bachelors, are songsters who sing loudly for their size and for up to 30 minutes with just brief pauses. He displays four key vocalisations known as fullsong, subsong, downscale and chuck, all used for different occasions. (For a sample of his fullsong visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLN3fg9xPB0.) With a diet of mostly invertebrates and small ripe fruit, a robin pair usually produces two broods per season of two to three chicks. They use foraging tactics including foot trembling, wing flicking and tail flicking to flush hidden insect prey.

For Māori, the toutouwai call was thought to bring good or bad news, depending on the time and place. If you heard its call when hunting, it was a sign your trip would be a failure. Despite its tiny size, the robin Male toutouwai in Lone Kauri Road, Karekare. Photo by Jacqui Geux.

(along with other small birds) was trapped by Māori for food.

The recent Karekare robin sighting is exciting news for Ark in the Park: fostering species in a predator-controlled area to build populations for natural dispersal into the wider Waitâkere Ranges has always been the ultimate goal. This is dependent on the prevalence of healthy forest links enabling wildlife to disperse and settle safely in areas with a good food source and regular pest control. The majority of our native birds will only fly 2.5km or less between habitats, so more wildlife links with pest control and habitat restoration are essential for safe passage for native birds and other fauna.

Long term Ark in the Park supporter Karen Colgan reports: “This year has been high in rats following the heavy fruiting of the forest (masting) and will possibly affect robin numbers as they are vulnerable from October to March when they are nesting”.

Time will tell if the black robin will deem Karekare a safe place to breed, but the strong predator control work of the Karekare Landcare Association bodes well for the future of toutouwai there.

The Kauri Rescue project is extremely busy now that drier weather means we can help more people support the health of their sick kauri trees, writes MELS BARTON.

Almost 100 private landowners are engaged in the project and over 1470 trees have been treated. Landowners monitor how trees respond, which helps refine the dose needed.

We only work on private land and our citizen science project is supported by Auckland Council’s Natural Environment Targeted Rate.

Participants’ properties cover a huge variety of situations and we have everything from people with only a single kauri tree in their garden to those with over 160 hectares of kauri bush on their farm. Many of our participants live in Waitâkere, with lots in Titirangi, but we also have an increasing number of properties on the North Shore and further north.

Landowners with large properties and a lot of kauri need help to treat and monitor their trees so we have recruited a team of ‘Ambassadors’ to help. We will be running workshops every Saturday over the summer and if you’d like to get involved we’d love to hear from you. We get to visit the most amazing properties and work in some beautiful pieces of bush. If you’re missing your bush fix sign up on our website and join the team! http://www. kaurirescue.org.nz/newsreel/join-the-team

If you are concerned about the health of the kauri on your property we can help. The sooner you treat sick trees the better. If your trees have thinning canopies and/or gum bleeding at the base then they might have kauri dieback disease. Sign up on our website and get your trees checked for no charge: http://www. kaurirescue.org.nz/i-want-to-treat-my-kauri.html.

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