Last year was our inaugural Bogan Bingo fundraiser. A swell time was had by all and together, the community raised a non-trivial amount to support local kiwi and the precious habitat.
Let’s go again for 2025 and have a laugh to blow out the winter doldrums!
There will be prizes, auctions, a raffle, a bar, complimentary supper and a few surprises including a DJ set.
On the Thames Coast, around 20 years ago, vigilant locals knew that the local kiwi population was on the verge of collapse. Thames Coast Kiwi Care was formed in 2006 with the mission: “To protect and enhance kiwi populations on the Thames Coast”.
We wanted to ‘hear kiwi calling from backyards again’. This dream has become reality as Te Mātā and Tapu locals are reporting a significant increase in kiwi foot prints, calls and also sightings over the past few years.
We now have around 350 kiwi in our recovery area!
This is an incredible achievement by our community, with essentially ten times the 2006 kiwi population now present locally.
We’re thrilled to share a short trail camera compilation from the burrow of sires Taringamā and his family. It captures adorable moments from their lives but also worrying has some unwanted cameo appearances from you know who.
This hexmap represents real-time trapping data from our project area. The more red the colour, the higher the number of catches or density of traps.
You can mouse-over the hexagons for breakdowns on species catches. You can also use the top left red menu buttons to display subsets of data: by project, species or trap.
Massive thanks to the smart people at Groundtruth and Trap.NZ for this amazing resource!
Our scope has expanded from solely protecting kiwi to a “whole of habitat” approach. Our updated mission is:
To work with our community to restore the habitat so kiwi and other native species thrive.
Thanks to substantial funding provided by the Waikato Regional Council’s Natural Heritage Fund we have also been targeting rats and possums in the project area since 2023. These self-setting AT220 traps work continuously each night, extending the existing DOC200 trap lines that focus primarily on mustelid control and providing a buffer zone to public conservation land. Trap lines are checked and maintained each month by our Rat and Possum Project Leader, and also our dedicated team of volunteer trappers that undertake their fortnightly DOC200 checks.
The trap design and the servicing of the AT220 traps is leading to great successes. In early 2025 we have approximately 200 traps working and almost 4000 possums have been removed protecting our native flora and fauna. In the next year we plan to set another 90 self-setting traps
Running alongside the active pest trapping are bird surveys, to help gain an understanding of the existing biodiversity of NZ birds in our project area. We hope to collect data on how the control of rats and possums can help bring about an increase in both bird numbers and also the range of bird species recorded in the project area.
In early 2025 we installed three listening devices that all confirmed the presence of our precious pekapeka tou roa, native long tailed bats. They have the highest threat ranking of Nationally Critical and effective predator control is essential to their survival as well.
This is a new focus for us to raise awareness and add additional protection for New Zealand’s only native land mammal that is critically endangered.
Watch this space!
Want to know more about these fascinating creatures? Visit the great New Zealand Geographic for a brilliant article: ‘Bat Signals’ by Jonathan Carson. Photographed by Rob Suisted.
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Central Waikato Predator Free Hub are hosting this online event tomorrow night.
Join us for an evening webinar from the comfort of your home and learn more about the Australasian Bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus).
You'll learn about what makes this amazing bird so special, hear about monitoring, the Great Matuku Muster, and what to consider if you’re trapping in wetland habitats.
The Love Bittern Project is dedicated to community-led conservation of the Australasian Bittern and its wetland habitat.
Wendy works tirelessly helping communities to raise awareness, conduct research and implement conservation strategies to ensure the survival of this species.
Please register to receive the webinar link:
docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScfYozfFEPtEtR6_TcG23XyvnoRCJckSn9GFOqT9ODo__UKFw/viewform?usp=h...
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Bogan Bingo is BACK! 🎸💥
Get ready for a night of chaos, laughs, and full-throttle fun — all in support of protecting our local kiwi 💚
🗓 Saturday 2 August
📍 Thames Civic Centre
⏰ Doors open 6:30 PM | Bingo kicks off 7:15 PM
🎧 DJ Martin Marshall on the decks from 6:30 to get the party rolling
🎤 MC Greg Cato from Activate Events NZ
🎱 Bingo is $5 per play
🍷 Cash bar
🔥 Classic bingo with a cheeky bogan twist — packed with prizes, auctions, 🧀 supper, and 😂 heaps of laughs.
🚗💨 Leave the V8 at home, but rock up in your bogan best:
Think denim, leather, jandals, and that old AC/DC tee 🎸🧔👖
(Costumes optional, but prizes are up for grabs! 🏆)
🎟️ Tickets: $25 each, or just $20 per person for table bookings of 6 or 8.
👉 Go to our website to book, www.thamescoastkiwicare.org/tickets/
Tag your crew and get ready to yell “BINGO!” like a true legend
#BoganBingo #ThamesCoastKiwiCare
Tomorrow in Thames - Sunday 15 June 11-1pm- sign up here: form.jotform.com/251327397532056Looking forward to hosting Shaun Ryan from 2040 Ltd at our Winter Forum over the weekend. Shaun will be speaking on A.I. thermal cameras and High Interaction Rate traps.
A.I. monitoring can show us the predators we aren't catching, help us improve our predator control and target the most elusive predator species.
We still have spots available if you would like to come.
Please RSVP using this link form.jotform.com/251327397532056
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How decades of effort brought kōkako song back to the forests
How decades of effort brought kōkako song back to the forests
www.rnz.co.nz
Twenty-five years ago the fate of kōkako looked bleak, but concerted efforts have turned the tide.
Photos from Rotoroa Island NZ's post
