references
the recently created Community Conservation Partnerships Fund is being sought to cover the cost of making the traps and installing them, except for volunteer time and expenses. Should the Trust not be successful in this fund application then alternative funding will need to be sought, delaying the project which will need to be implemented in stages. Funding to date has been principally from two sources. Gillian and Derek Crombie have committed to donate $10,000 per annum for the first 5 years. Adventurer Bear Grylls and the Mountain Film Unit in Queenstown have also endorsed the project. The television production, NBC’s ‘Get Out Alive’ with Bear Grylls, was filmed in the Matukituki valley in March 2013 and they were so taken by the environment that they donated $10,000 towards the project. The Trust’s basic vsion is to ensure that birdlife is protected and enhanced with an initial goal
of supporting existing species such as kea, kaka, robin, whio, and kakariki, and ultimately reintroducing mohua, weka and kiwi. This would be an amazing accomplishment, with the valley being so easily accessible to the public, and no predator fencing
required. The valley has natural barriers in the form of high mountain ranges on three sides, and it is hoped that the trapping efforts will complete the picture and keep the predators to such low levels that the iconic morning chorus can once again be heard.
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Photos: Gillian Crombie