Wētā nook

With the success of the eel feeding platform and the sign educating the general public on the unique life history of the longfin eel and why they are special, we thought we could carry that theme to other species we have in the gully. With this in mind we have developed a tree wētā nook. We have built a short track into the understory and installed three wētā motels with the possibility of installing a fourth. From experience it often takes some time (up to a year) for wētā motels made out of new timber to populate. Two of these are new and one is an old mature one that’s been relocated to this nook. The plan is that when the wētā motels are populated we will design a sign showing the life cycle of the wētā and, because of its relationship with the Pūriri moth include the moth’s life cycle as well. The nook is off the red track going north from the depot and just past the seat. See video. The video size had to be reduce to load on this site. This have reduced the quality some what.

Staff (stream water) gauge

As a public interest project we have installed a staff gauge in the stream that can be seen from the walk bridge that runs between Grenache Place and St James Drive. The gauge itself was donated by Waikato Regional Council, being second hand and surplus to their requirements. The sign on the bridge railing explains how to read the gauge. Zero is at the February summer drought level. We will be putting coloured tape on the gauge indicating the highest stream level during a rain event. We have just had (6th April 2025) 25mm of rain over six hours which raised the stream level at the gauge to 7.5cm (750mm). See photo.

Red and Yellow admiral breeding programme update

The red admiral breed and release programme is proving challenging and demonstrates that to translocate species you sometimes have to be prepared to be flexible and persistent in your approach. Breeding within the tunnel house is proving elusive. There is ongoing planting of flower species for a nectar source which, once established may encourage breeding. Trips to Awakino Gorge (south of Piopio) with nettle plants in pots, with the objective of getting red admiral eggs to bring back to the tunnel house, did not prove successful this year, with no sign of butterflies at the site. Fifteen yellow admiral caterpillars were relocated from nettle outside the tunnel house to inside so as to finish their life cycle protected from parasitic wasps, only to find that 10 were eaten by a rogue praying mantis that must have come in on a nettle plant. That left only five to release. We have decided that, rather than plant a nettle plant here and there, it would be better to plant a decent size grove. The theory is that when we release butterflies, they have a better chance of finding the nettle and, once they start laying eggs, the caterpillar’s life cycle has better natural protection among a grove than a single plant. Ongaonga is a hard plant to grow. If the growing conditions are not to their liking, the plants do not hesitate to die. We have selected what we think is an ideal spot. It is shaded from direct sunlight being under established manuka, never dries out but is not boggy and is easy to protect from the public. Seedlings for this planting is underway, see photo.

Evening moth pollinators

As the autumn draws in, we are losing some of our interesting moths. During the summer if you are wandering around your garden at dusk, you will probably see a moth hovering over flowers like hummingbirds of the insect world using an enormous amount of energy while gathering nectar. The moth in this video is probably a Helicoverpa armigera or maybe Chrysodeixis eriosoma. These moths are some of the many invertebrates that go about pollinating our flowers. The caterpillar stage of the Helicoverpa armigera can be a bit annoying by eating its way into tomatoes, usually around the stalk.

Spider nests

Apologies to those of you that suffer from arachnophobia. Those of you walking through the gully will have noticed a high number of the nurseryweb (Dolomedes minor) spider nests this summer. The female will guard its nest at night but can sometimes be seen on a cloudy day. During the day they tend to retreat to the base of the foliage their nest is attached to. They are an endemic species which means they only exist in New Zealand. An interesting fact: they can walk on water! When not on nesting duties, as a nocturnal species, Dolomedes minor hunts and scavenges for food at night. Their prey consists of a variety of small organisms including other spiders, dobsonfly larvae, earthworms, native bees and other small insects.

Our NZ native bees

Quick Facts: • We have 28 species of native bees in New Zealand. Of those, 27 are endemic – meaning they occur only in New Zealand • Our native bees largely fall into three families – Leioproctus, Lasioglossum, and Hylaeus • Females of the Leioproctus family (the largest family of the three) dig 20-30cm tunnels into the ground, into which they lay one egg, and feed the larvae with pollen and nectar foraged from surrounding flowers. • Lasioglossum bees are similar, although several females might share a nest hole. • The Hylaeus family nests in plant material – beetle holes, or hollow straws in dead flax stems • Non-aggressive and very rarely sting • Smaller than honey bees and generally black • Best identified by their nests - a cluster of small holes in the ground under bare, undisturbed soils. • Are important pollinators for our native flora such as mānuka, kānuka, hebe and pohutukawa but have also adapted to introduced flowers • For most species foraging range is limited (less than 100 m). Both these images are taken in Mangaiti Gully.

Eel feeding platform statistics

We found ourselves in a position where we had to invest in a CCTV camera at the eel feeding station to protect our infrastructure, our plantings around the site and the eels themselves. Sad, I know, but that is the reality of life where areas are opened up to the public these days. We can guarantee that your privacy will be protected with all files treated with the professionalism you would expect. We have noticed that the camera installation has already had a major deterrent on wayward behaviour. One of the positives is that we can now collect some really interesting data. Analysing the footage of a fine Saturday in January we recorded the following: • A total of 113 people (including children) were recorded • Visits were from 7.15am to 8.58pm • 94 were adults and 19 were children • 48 people spent time observing and / or feeding the eels, 12 of which were children • The longest time spent at the platform was 35 minute with 5 groups of visitors spending more than 20 minutes. • 13 walkers were walking their dogs • 3 were runners For our Trust to know that the infrastructure investment is being used to the extent it is, is a real positive for us.