Not all tough jobs are pretty, but the results usually are. I dedicated my weekend to helping reestablish native forests and habitat for the Yellow-eyed penguin, a unique bird that is endemic to New Zealand. Unfortunately, in the late 1990s, more than half of the fragile population of penguins in the region was wiped out by an accidental fire after farmers had been doing their annual burning and the wind picked up unexpectedly. The penguins naturally retreated to their nests, but sadly were not able to make it to safety in time. That's where my passion for conservation comes in. The purpose of this project is to help restore native trees to provide shelter for the remaining penguins from predators and other potential threats. Additionally, the second day of the project was dedicated to clearing invasive plant species out of the forest reserve the traditional way: by hand with some rigid gloves and a hack saw. Working along-side the Department Of Conservation has provided me the opportunity to see some beautiful reservations that are only accessible via the DOC. On the road we faced a bit of traffic... only it wasn't cars that were blocking the road! That's all for this adventure but the door is open for more projects with the Department Of Conservation.
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| starting the day with some tree-climbing |
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| Yellow-eyed penguin landing |
