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51

WWW.COROMANDELLIFE.CO.NZ

H

ABITAT

– The NZ Dotterel is often found

on sandy beaches on the east coast of

New Zealand, normally from August to

March. There are many Dotterels on the coast

of the Coromandel Peninsula. NZ Dotterels

usually nest in or near the dunes. In Tairua

we have a lot of Dotterels hiding in the dune

grasses; even more nest at Opoutere Beach.

BREEDING

– Parents lay their eggs between

spring and summer, usually three eggs per

‘nest’, which is often just an indentation in the

sand. Dotterel eggs look like small oval pebbles,

and are highly camouflaged, which makes them

hard to see and easy to accidentally stand

on. An egg takes about 28 days to hatch; the

chicks can walk the same day they hatch and

can normally fly within 6 – 8 weeks.

CONSERVATION EFFORTS

– Breeding

success of the Northern New Zealand Dotterel

is usually low at unmanaged sites (where there

are no info signs or fencing to protect the area).

The main threats to Dotterels are the loss of

eggs and chicks to predators, human activities

in nesting areas, and loss of nests to big tides.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

– You can help by

staying clear of Dotterel nesting areas; keep

dogs and vehicles off beaches and sandpits

when Dotterels are present. Signs will soon

be put up informing the Tairua public about

Dotterel breeding times and cautions. Fences

will also be erected deter humans from

destroying their habitats.

So please, next time you go to Tairua or any

other coastal beach please stay off the dunes,

caring for the

ENDANGERED

NZ DOTTEREL

TAIRUA SCHOOL ...

DEVELOPING GLOBAL CITIZENS

W

e are a group of students from Tairua School;

and in line with NZ Conservation Week, we

participated in an inquiry project to choose

an endangered New Zealand native specie

– to research it and to investigate the issues

causing the decrease in population.

Then in groups, we had to come up with a

plan to help conserve one of our endangered

species. Our group chose the Dotterel, an

important specie in our community, and we

knew we could make a difference.

We entered in the Habitat Heroes competition

(run by DOC), and as part of our action

plan project we are trying to win the $750

competition prize to put towards the

conservation of the Dotterel.

if we won the prize money we would put it

towards this: We would like to install more

permanent DOC Dotterel information signs

at each of the 7 beach access points along

Tairua main beach: now there is only one, at

the north end access.

As part of our project action plan, our group

will be going out to the local Tairua beach next

term with a DOC ranger to put up fences and

signs made by junior Tairua School students

(see below centre) to make the public aware

of the Dotterel nests at Tairua Beach during

breeding time. We will put these signs on the

beach next to the fences along the dunes so

the public knows the two are connected.

The New Zealand Dotterel is a very special

icon to us as we live on the coast, and it would

be very upsetting if this bird became extinct.

So please obey the signs and do what you can

to help us save the NZ Dotterel!

Project and article by Tairua School Dotterel

Conservation Group:

Stella Cory-Wright

(pictured), Hunter Crowe, Jessica Kinzett, Lilly

Harvey, and Cameron Kilpatrick.

keep dogs away from fenced areas and stop

them from chasing the Dotterels.

Thank you for caring for our local environment

and thank you for caring for the endangered

New Zealand Native Dotterel!

TO LEARN MORE OR BE INVOLVED..

.

Contact Nicola Miller (Local Dotterel Ranger) at

nimiller@doc.govt.nz or

DOC Hauraki Office at

07 867 9180,

thames@doc.govt.nz

Read about NZ Conservation Week projects

here:

www.doc.govt.nz/conservationweek/

All Tairua Habitat Heroes competition class

entries can be viewed at

www.tairuaschool.

com/doc-habitat-heroes-competition/