News

Our latest newsletter is now available to read, with a summary of our activities for the past year.

Read our latest newsletter which outlines our activities and progress for the year 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021

Read our newsletter for the 2019 - 2020 season.

Read the latest newsletter to see what we have been up to for the 2018-19 season.

View our latest Newsletter and see what the Trust has been up to for the past year.

Well done and a big thankyou to Cashmere Primary School Maunu Team (5 to 7 year olds) who fundraised $125 towards our trapping programme. They were all so attentive and interested in the presentation about what we do!

The Trust's summary of activity and statistics for the year. A lot of hard work has been done by Paul and volunteers with the wonderful support of DoC and sponsors.

See our latest newsletter. A good summary of all the action this season. Lots done, lots still to do, but we are really pleased with progress!

This summer a lot of wonderful work has been happening, with the Trust's project manager, Paul Hellebrekers, committing many hours of his time towards trap clearing and installing many new lines of traps. We now have aproximately 420 new traps throughout the valley, catching stoats, rats, possums, wild cats, and hedgehogs. The bird life is flourishing with new fledgling robins and kea making their presence known. Falcons, kakarirki, kaka, rock wren etc are also being spotted. Very exciting!

A training day for new volunteers was held late in May 2015 with a good keen group of people taking a day out to learn about the Trust, how to set traps, learn about the tracking tunnel and beech seed funnel procedure, identify native birds and predators signs, and complete health and safety training including several cold river crossings of the Hawea River under the experienced guidance of Stu Thorne and Donald Lousley. Many thanks to Paul Hellebrekers & DoC for facilitating this.

It is with great pleasure that the Trust appoint Paul Hellebrekers as Project Manager from 1 November 2014. Those of you who know Paul will not be surprised that he has wonderful enthusiasm and commitment, and is actively achieving our objectives in a fast and well coordinated manner! Sponsorship from Southern Hemisphere Proving Grounds has made this appointment possible. We are extremely grateful for their support.

The Matukituki Charitable Trust has been selected as one of three finalists for the Inland Otago Conservation Awards. Considering the short time frame that the Trust has been operating, we are delighted to have this recognition of our efforts to date. Our congratulations go to Neil and Barb Simpson of Queenstown for the wonderful work they have done over many years planting native trees and removing wild conifers in the Wakatipu Basin.

Read about the Trusts progress to December 2014. We have lots to do in 2015, with plenty of options for volunteers and sponsors to involve themselves with over the next 12 months!

Alison Ballance interviews Stu Thorne (Volunteer and Aspiring Hut Warden) and Gillian Crombie (Trustee)in February for the Science and Environmental programme on Radio NZ, notation "Mast Seeding and Predators"

A group of keen volunteers and DOC workers had 3 days based at Aspiring Hut to monitor 14 lines of tracking tunnels and to set up 16 beech seed funnels. The tracking tunnels are currently showing mice and possums but no rats were detected. Our next monitoring is planned for the last week of May. The beech seed funnels will also be checked then and this will help predict the likelihood of a beech seed mast, which is expected this year.

Media release from DOC - June 2013