Source: Department of Conservation
How a keen nature lover formed the Matatā Trappers group, and the work they’re doing to make a difference for nature on their back doorstep.
Connections in the community make things happen
Dean has always loved being in the outdoors. Long runs that took him off the beaten track as a kid, later turned into casual hunting, yet another excuse to get outside. Now he is grateful to his two dogs who demand he gets regular exercise outdoors.
Dean’s hometown of Matatā has two incredibly special reserves right on the doorstep, the steep slopes of the Scenic Reserve are home to a unique stand of hard beech, pōhutukawa and kānuka, and the Matatā Wildlife Refuge is home to a small population of matatā/fernbird, which have disappeared from Wairarapa, Wellington, and Canterbury, as similar wetlands have been converted to farmland.
Back in 2022, DOC Senior Community Ranger Jesse presented to the Matatā Residents Association. He described how the Scenic Reserve was the only area with no predator control in a line of bush running from Lake Rotomā to the coast. Jesse appealed for volunteers to form a group to help protect the bush from the spread of weeds and give native birds like the kōkako safe place to live, breed, and forage for food.
Dean rose to the challenge.
Feeling inspired by this talk, and the urgent need to save the community’s precious biodiversity, Dean thought, “This is something I can help with.”
The Matatā Trappers group was born.
Dean and the group started trap runs as soon as DOC and the Kōkako Trust had installed box traps for rats and stoats on the lagoon track and in the campground. A set of old possum traps in the steep Scenic Reserve from a previous initiative had fallen to pieces and the track had become overgrown.
“We didn’t have the know-how or the funds to do anything about it.”
DOC’s Predator Free 2050 Ranger Freddy Matariki Carr offered to help with a plan to protect the special birds and plants which call the reserve home.
Six months later and with Freddy’s help, the group has eight lines of completely renovated Sentinel possum traps running through the hills of the Scenic Reserve, and a network of rat and mustelid traps in the lagoon area and campground.
Thanks to their trapping work, there are fewer rats, possums and mustelids which means the matatā (fernbird), kōkako, matuku hurepō (Australasian bittern), and the rare trees on the hills have a much better chance of surviving.
“Community is what we create, together,” Dean says, “and we’re slowly making a difference for our community right here in Matatā.”
Growing support for the group
Dean has big plans for the group. He is working to get a trapline roster going and to start tackling pest plants in both reserves.
“We also need to do something about the number of deer in the Scenic Reserve, and we could do with help to find more funding too.”
Ranger Freddy is thrilled with the community support so far and encourages more locals to get involved, “there is lots to do and a role for everyone in the Predator Free 2050 movement. Working together builds communities, and everyone has skills to help in some way.”
This is the power of community. If we all play a part in supporting Predator Free 2050, the difference will be even greater. Freddy and Dean show what an impact people can make for nature.
Want to be a part of the action?
To learn more about how you can become involved in the Predator Free 2050 and help build your community, visit the PF2050 Get Involved page: Get involved in Predator Free 2050 (doc.govt.nz)
