News

By Moniqua Nelson-Tunley from Waikato Regional Council

New Zealand’s lizards are often described as our forgotten fauna. They are often overlooked in conservation projects because they are more cryptic (harder to find) than native birds- but they are also more diverse and threatened than our native birds. There are currently 105 species of native skink and gecko, some of which haven’t been formally described yet (new species are being discovered on an almost yearly basis). Only nine of these species are considered “Not Threatened”, leaving 96 species (91% of our lizard fauna) at risk or threatened with extinction.

One species, the cobble skink, was discovered less than 10 years ago and the entire population (only 40 animals) is held in captivity because their coastal habitat was destroyed. The cobble skink was abundant along a discrete patch of boulder beach coastline near Westport. In the 10 years since it’s discovery, the species rapidly declined until the last population was trapped between the Granity pub and the Tasman sea on an eroding piece of beach. The future for this species is bleak unless its habitat is restored and the species returned to the wild.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Thanks to restoration and pest animal control, a few lizard species are beginning to recover. There have been a number of successful projects where pest control (or eradication when possible) combined with restoring native vegetation has resulted in increasing lizard populations. The key things to keep in mind when restoring habitat for any animal are; what do they eat (food sources), what eats them (predators), and where do they hide (refuges).

There are mountains of evidence about the impact pest mammals have on native wildlife. You are probably familiar with the war on rats, possums and mustelids, but mice and hedgehogs are also major lizard predators. Rats and mice are possibly the worst of the bunch because they affect all levels of the ecosystem, eating seeds, eggs, chicks, invertebrates and lizards.

Being ectothermic (cold blooded) makes lizards especially vulnerable because if a predator finds them during winter they don’t have the energy to run away. Smaller lizards can hide in small cracks and crevices where only a mouse can reach them, but the larger lizards aren’t so lucky. All of our larger skink and gecko species are either safe in predator-free reserves, or rapidly declining due to predation. On pest-free offshore islands the lizard populations increase exponentially. Pest suppression on the mainland also results in native species recovery, but the control needs to be long-term in order to keep the pest numbers low.

It can be difficult to control pest animals in a dune environment due to the high level of public use and interest in the area. Early engagement of the community and signage to inform visitors can go a long way to getting support for pest control in amenity areas. Another way to yield benefits for the coast is to encourage adjacent landowners to control rats on their properties- no-one wants a rat nesting in their roof! The self-resetting trap technology (by Goodnature) is very convenient for non-resident landowners. With the huge enthusiasm for Predator Free NZ, now’s a great time to start a pest control group.

I’m sure you are all aware that the iconic green pastures of New Zealand were once vast wetlands and forests. Hopefully you are also aware that the destruction of New Zealand’s natural environment is ongoing. Coastal environments are no exception, and in fact are often more heavily impacted by human modification than most other ecosystems. Your dune restoration projects are helping turn the tide (figuratively speaking) of coastal ecosystem loss in New Zealand. The best action you can do to help protect coastal lizard populations is to continue the good work you are already doing- plant a variety of native species in and around your dunes, rocky shores, boulder beaches and coastal forests. Lizards eat small invertebrates (like sand hoppers, flies and moths), nectar and small fruit. In dunes, planting flowering and fruiting plants like sand coprosma and pimelea provides a great food source for lizards, as well as attracting insects. Knobby club rush (wiwi) and muehlenbeckia within backdunes provides dense foliage which makes great lizard habitat. Geckos love licking nectar from pohutukawa and flax flowers.

Another activity you might already be intuitively doing is planting to connect nearby patches of existing habitat. This is extremely valuable for lizards and other small animals. Imagine how hard it is for a 5cm skink to run across 2000m of sand to colonise a new dune. By planting between existing vegetation, you are creating dispersal corridors that make it much more likely that the little skink will succeed in finding a new home.

Does your coastal restoration project conduct beach clean-ups? Removing plastic and other rubbish from the beach is a great idea, but natural detritus like driftwood and seaweed can be an asset. Placing driftwood and seaweed in the dune system (while minimising squashed plants) creates refuges for lizards to escape from predators as well as somewhere to hibernate in cold weather. Natural detritus also serves other purposes- it is a source of food for native sand scarab larvae (they look like a huhu grub) and other invertebrates, it slows the wind, allowing sand and seeds to collect in the lee and providing nursery-like conditions for seeds to germinate. When the logs and seaweed eventually break down they provide natural fertilizer for dune plants.

So hopefully by now I’ve convinced you that our lizards are precious and need protection, but also that there are easy things you can do to help protect our native lizards. You are probably already doing some of the things I’ve mentioned above – thanks! Have a go at a few of my suggestions that you aren’t already undertaking.

• Plant a variety of native plants- plant diversity supports animal diversity.
• If removing driftwood and seaweed from the beach, place above the high-tide line within the vegetation.
• Connect nearby patches of vegetation by planting in between.
• Set up a pest control program on your coast and work with neighbours to expand the area where pests are supressed.

Read more here:

Cobble skink: http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/afternoons/audio/201804032/critter-of-the-week and https://www.theguardian.com/environment/radical-conservation/2017/jun/01/new-species-discovered-behind-a-pub-then-saved-from-extinction

Conservation status of New Zealand reptiles, 2015. Department of Conservation. http://www.doc.govt.nz/Documents/science-and-technical/nztcs17entire.pdf

Goodnature self-resetting traps

https://www.goodnature.co.nz/

A broad range of pest control options

https://www.traps.co.nz/

Predator free NZ- getting started

http://predatorfreenz.org/get-started/

It is not exactly very new (from 2013) but many of you may not have seen this movie, which can be viewed on Youtube.

Sand, next to air and water is the most used natural resource in the world. More volume and tonnage than oil and more valuable. Watch this eye opening film on why beaches and islands are disappearing and why people’s livelihoods are at risk. Unfortunately it has been removed from youtube due to copyright issues. However there are still some videos there that show the issues. Watch and share the information learnt from it.

Some of you will have been involved in riparian planting along your coastlines. NIWA is doing a survey to find out what, where, how and how effective those plantings have been.  They ask groups to help and will set out the results in a new database. Read NIWA’s request here:

Many hundreds of Kiwis have invested time and energy into restoring New Zealand streams by riparian fencing or planting.

NIWA has begun a project to understand more about the investment Kiwis have made so we can help build better support for riparian restoration in future. We also want to learn more about how stream ecosystems recover after riparian restoration so we can give better guidance on how to design restoration projects so they give the best results for water quality and aquatic animal communities.

To do this we have created the National Riparian Restoration Database (NRRD). We hope this database will become the main source of information on what riparian restoration work has been done around New Zealand. We will use it to develop our research on stream restoration processes, which will involve volunteer “citizen scientists” (yes, we will be looking for people to take part!).

For this we need your help. Would you give 5 minutes to fill out our NRRD online survey at https://riparian.niwa.co.nz/ and also forward this information to anyone you know who has been involved in riparian fencing or planting? No fencing or planting work is too old – in fact for us, old is gold!

The Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour Catchment Restoration Fund was created to support groups restoring, maintaining or enhancing native vegetation of areas around the Porirua Harbour catchment. It funds some important work restoring natural habitats in their backyards.

It is hoped that this fund will enable groups to:

• Improve the health of the native ecosystems around the catchment area

• Reduce the amount of soil getting into streams and the harbour

• Involve others in their restoration work

• Spread the message that native ecosystems, such as those in and around Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour, are in important areas to be protected and cherished

The fund can support up to three years of restoration work and is open for applications in September. The fund is available to all community groups looking to help restore and protect the biodiversity of the beautiful Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour and its catchment.

Check out more details and download the application form here.

Pest koi carp will be processed as a native plant fertiliser in a dune restoration programme, Associate Environment Minister Scott Simpson announced today.

The $108,000 grant to the Coastal Restoration Trust, provided through the Community Environment Fund, will see digested koi carp, a pest fish, sourced from Waikato Regional Council’s pilot capture and processing facility, being used as fertiliser in community-based dune restoration programmes.

“This project is about turning an environmental problem into part of an environmental solution. Koi carp are a pest that the Waikato Regional Council was already working to eradicate. This project will take the derived fertiliser and pilot using it to support the growth of native plants on some of our degraded coastal dunes,” Mr Simpson says.

“What impresses me most about this project is that it demonstrates incredible levels of innovation, collaboration and commitment, and addresses not one but a range of environmental issues. All of the parties to the project are to be congratulated.”

Koi carp were introduced as an ornamental fish, but pose a significant threat to freshwater ecosystems by uprooting water plants, lowering water quality and eating insects normally consumed by native fish. Koi carp are considered to be one of the most invasive freshwater fish in the world.

The Trust hopes to see at least 10 coast care groups using Koi carp derived material in their dune restoration programmes by the end of project.

The broader goal of the Trust is to give coastal communities a better understanding of dune systems, the current state of these habitats and practical options for restoration.

The Community Environment Fund provides funding to empower New Zealanders to take environmental action. It support projects that strengthen partnerships, raise public awareness of environmental issues, and encourage community participation in environmental initiatives. The fund has awarded more than $12 million to environmental projects since 2010.

As published on the beehive website.