Predator Free Wellington to expand efforts citywide

Wellington City Council is a proud partner of the Predator Free Wellington project (PFW), who are working hard to make Pōneke a creative capital where people and nature thrive. Here is a summary of what PFW have achieved through the Miramar phase, and their plans moving forward.

Lone stoat invader eliminated at 3 percent of the cost 

In November 2023, the PFW team eliminated Norway rats, ship rats, stoats, and weasels from the entire Miramar Peninsula, which is around 1,000 hectares. Then in December 2023, a volunteer identified a lone male stoat on a camera! 

After working with experts, volunteer trappers were able to think like a stoat and catch it. The PFW volunteers knew it was a fool’s errand to manage hundreds of traps; instead they needed to do a handful of traps really well. They chose premium sites that were freshly baited and beautifully presented, and after years of trapping rats they knew that bush edges and fence-lines hid the stoat from predators like kārearea (NZ falcons) and kāhu (hawks) - these were good places for traps.

The trappers used heaps of fresh red meat such as beef, mutton, and venison, and stoat bedding. The tennis ball-sized bedding was a visual lure, with the idea that if the stoat wasn’t hungry it might be curious about finding a mate or fighting off another stoat. After 207 days and 755 hours of volunteer time, the Predator Free Miramar volunteers caught the stoat in a trap north of the Massey Memorial! 

Miramar bird numbers almost doubled

PFW’s annual five minute bird count monitoring shows that detections of native birds on Miramar Peninsula have increased by 91 percent, with tūi showing an increase of 141 percent. When you remove introduced predators (rats, stoats and weasels) from an urban environment, it leads to great outcomes for biodiversity.

Citizen scientists recorded kākā and kākāriki on the Miramar Peninsula on eight and 20 occasions respectively. This is an early sign that these two species are in the process of recolonising forested habitats on the peninsula. Both species were successfully re-introduced to Zealandia and have been steadily expanding their distribution throughout Wellington city in recent years. Kākāriki also live on Matiu/Somes Island.

Residents have spotted kārearea (NZ native falcon) all over Miramar Peninsula, from native forests to urban areas, even flying over Wellington Airport. The clusters of sightings near Shelly and Worser Bays likely show where breeding pairs hang out, proving just how adaptable and present these falcons are in the area.

Urban eradication blueprint created

To make sure this work continues across urban environments, PFW created an easy-to-use, step-by-step blueprint so others can replicate their success. This blueprint reflects what they have learned to date and how this can be done faster and more economically. The team are focused on optimisation, and there will be future versions of this blueprint that incorporate ongoing discoveries and innovations.

Growing volunteer numbers

PFW volunteers dedicate more than 55,000 hours a year to achieve the predator free mission. This huge contribution is equivalent to having an entirely new Predator Free Wellington field team, valued at approximately $2 million a year in support. The monetary contribution of volunteers is a crucial aspect of their value, but it only scratches the surface of their overall impact. When PFW complete their project by 2030, they’ll have hundreds more trained volunteers across the city, and thousands of households, watching for signs of rats.

What’s next for PFW

Now that PFW know how to effectively remove target animals, but their next step is to discover how they can continue to do this faster and more economically. While they’re still only halfway through Phase two, they are already gearing up for Phase three, which will be the biggest yet. 

Read more about the incredible work done by PFW through their 23/24 impact report.