Titī field trip on Kāpiti Island

Two of our awesome Rūnanga kaimahi from the Tiaki Taiao team, Te Kanawa Kingi and Gruelyn Taitua, have returned from an awesome field trip on Kapiti Island, where they spent 4 days and 3 nights immersed in the tītī colony. This time of year is crucial as the tītī begin forming breeding pairs and prospecting for burrows, giving us the rare opportunity to interact closely with these precious manu.

Te Kanawa Kingi and Gruelyn Taitua

Camping right in the colony, they worked day and night, along with members from DOC and others, to monitor active burrows and gather important data on breeding pairs to help us understand the health of our tītī population on the motu. This was an opportunity to get in the field for diurnal visits, allowing them to get hands-on with the tītī and experience the mahi firsthand. This was an awesome opportunity for these two kaitiaki rangers and amazing learnings for our Rangatahi.

Weka have been predating on titi chicks on the island, with tītī now nearing local extinction on Kapiti. The aim now is to find the most effective method of protecting the tītī while they’re vulnerable to weka predation so we can help re-establish a fully functioning population of Tītī on the motu.