I'm just pricking DOC into getting back to the talking table.
The Orange-fronted DOC attachments are not publicly available and you will have to ask DOC if you want a copy..As such, I do not have the ability, to provide forum readers with the attachments, unless the forum owners will put in place a mechanism that will allow for such information transfer to happen.
However, I dear say, that if you made the same inquiries, that I did, you will receive the same information I did.
Hi RNZ people,
Please look at the attached Orange-fronted parakeet recovery documents, that I received after writing the stuff below, before you make any decisions about what you will do, as RNZ news reporters and RNZ journalists. You will see, in those attached documents, that DOC employees and DOC scientists have always been promoting trapping as something that needs to happen even where aerial 1080 is being used.
Please look at all the information and make your own decision on what you are prepared to do to promote in your own roles as RNZ reporters and/or RNZ celebrity personalities. I sincerely hope that the words like "unhinged" and "anti-1080 nutter" will never be a part of the sort of wording that RNZ people will ever use, in the future, when describing intelligent bushmen that are prepared to sign output contracts that mean that they will never get paid unless they achieve the predetermined wild animal control densities targeted.
Also...Please ensure that your new RNZ personality, Karen Hay, that doesn't have a current RNZ email address, is forwarded this email.
Before you analyse the information about orange-fronted kakariki...Be warned that the Orange-fronted parakeets are, quite simply, the "canary-in-the-coalmine" with regards to the way DOC is using aerial 1080. Look at other birds that have better public profiles (kiwi, whio, kea, etc) who are also being hurt by the total public reporting emphasis on aerial 1080 poison and absolutely no public reporting on the trapping contractors that support the aerial 1080 operations with the on-the-ground trapping work that is happening.
This is taken out of a larger document I'm working through looking at 1080 costs and effectiveness.
You will notice that at the same time DOC has been dropping 1080 to "save" the Orange-fronted parakeet, the bird numbers have actually plummeted, from a small, but viable, breeding population, to numbers so low that they cannot be encountered during the monitoring.
You will also notice that DOC started monitoring rats only until the results showed that 1080 was not killing the rats, DOC then switched to possum monitoring, for one year, during which the 1080 failed to kill possums and then DOC switched back to rat monitoring and placed the monitoring lines in places that they should not have been placed which then enabled them to pick and choose which monitor line results they would use in the EPA report.
Cheers...Marty
10) Hawdon, Andrews and Poulter valleys 2016. 20,946 ha
EPA operational report:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Bait: $248,835.00 = $11.88/ha at a sowing rate of 2 + 2 = 4kg/ha = $2.97/kg bait cost.
Flying: $209,920.45 = $10.02/ha = $2.51/kg
Transport/Storage: No costs recorded.
Security: $3,332.00 = $0.72/ha
Monitoring:
Stoat:No costs recorded
Rat: No costs recorded
Possum: No costs recorded
No bait or carcass decay monitoring costs are recorded.
Management/Consultation: $45,012.00 = $2.15/ha
Consents: No costs recorded.
Post operation work (track clearance, buffer carcass removal, etc): No costs recorded.
Signage: $12,153.00 = $0.58/ha
Other: $1,567.00 + $3,124.00 = $4,691= $0.22/ha
Monitoring:
STOATS: No monitoring done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of stoat control for this operation.
POSSUMS: No monitoring done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum control for this operation.
RATS:
The post operation rat target was 5%.
Pre: Hawdon 4.7%, Poulter 0%
Post: Hawdon 0%, Poulter 0%
The operational area was below the rat target before the 1080 was applied.
There was no reason to proceed with the operation as the rat numbers were already below the target set.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control for this operation, except to say that the money spent here was wasted and would have been better spent somewhere else that had rat populations above the target set.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon & Poulter Valleys at the conclusion of the 2016 / 2017 breeding season."
Outcome result: "No OFP's have been found in these valleys this season. There may be one OFP nest yet to be confirmed."
Historical 1080 operations for this area are linked below:
This operational area has had eight aerial 1080 operations over the last nine years, The Orange-fronted parakeet monitoring showed 13 nesting pairs in 2011 and today no Orange-fronted parakeets are being encountered. This means that there was a viable breeding population before 1080 was used and over the decade of 1080 use the Orange-fronted parakeet population has dropped to the point that no individual birds are being encountered during monitoring.
2008:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: May-10%, June-7%, July-4%, Aug-11%, Sept-6%,
Post: Oct-0%, Nov-0%, Jan-0%, Mar-1.3%
This rat density monitoring pattern is normal, without rat control, with measured densities rising until Sept-Oct, dropping in Oct-Nov and starting to rise again in Mar-April.
The rat numbers never reached the level that could be described as "a plague of biblical proportions".
The 0% recorded in Nov/Jan cannot be definitely attributed to a 1080 rat kill and could very easily be the result of the rats moving into the canopy to feed.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control.
Possum: No possum monitoring was done.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum and stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: No target set.
Outcome result: No monitoring completed.
2009:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: Jan-2%, Feb-0.9%, Mar-3.1%, Apr-7.5%, May-5.6%, Jun-8.5%, Jul-9.3%, Aug-22.7%.
Post: Oct-1.5%, Nov-0%, Jan-0%.
This rat density monitoring pattern is normal, without rat control, with measured densities rising until Sept-Oct, dropping in Oct-Nov and starting to rise again in Mar-April.
The rat numbers never reached the level that could be described as "a plague of biblical proportions".
The low rat densities recorded in Oct/Nov/Jan cannot be definitely attributed to a 1080 rat kill and could very easily be the result of the rats moving into the canopy to feed.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control.
Possum: No possum monitoring was done.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum and stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon Valley at the conclusion of the 2009/10 breeding season. Orange-fronted parakeet encounter rates in the Hawdon Valley (from standardised monitoring lines) will not reduce from 2008/09 to 2009/10."
Outcome result: "OFP encounter rate in November 2009 was 0.38 birds per hour, compared with 0.21 birds per hour in the same survey in 2008."
2012:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: Aug/Sept/Oct- up to 7% (Please note that the highest recorded line is 7% and there is no average stated)
Post: Dec to Mar-0%.
This rat density monitoring pattern is normal, without rat control, with measured densities rising until Sept-Oct, dropping in Oct-Nov and starting to rise again in Mar-April.
The rat numbers never reached the level that could be described as "a plague of biblical proportions" with the highest recorded line being 7%.
The low rat densities recorded in Dec to Mar cannot be definitely attributed to a 1080 rat kill and could very easily be the result of the rats moving into the canopy to feed.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control.
Possum: No possum monitoring was done.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum and stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon Valley at the conclusion of the 2012 / 2013 breeding season. Orangefronted parakeet encounter rates in the Hawdon Valley (from standardised monitoring lines) will not reduce from 2011/12 to 2012/13."
Outcome result: "The orange-fronted parakeet population is present in both the Poulter and Hawdon valleys however the number of orange-fronted parakeets in the Hawdon and Poulter is not known and it can not yet be determined whether the populations are still in decline, are stable or are increasing. Encounter rates and nests found were down from 13 nests in 2011/2012 to 5 in 2012/2013."
2013:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: No monitoring done.
Post: No monitoring done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control.
Possum:
Pre: 70%BMI or 17.5%RTC & 31%BMI or 7.75%RTC (dividing the BMI by 4 to achieve RTC).
Post: 9%BMI or 2.25%RTC & 10%BMI or 2.5%RTC (dividing the BMI by 4 to achieve RTC).
The post possum density was more than twice the target of 1%RTC.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: "All known orange-fronted parakeet nests are fully protected against introduced predators."
Outcome result: "No monitoring of outcomes was undertaken."
2014:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: 26%
Post: 16%
The post rat density was more than 3 times the target of 5%.
Possum:
Pre: No monitoring done
Post: No Monitoring done
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum control.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon & Poulter Valleys at the conclusion of the 2014 / 2015 breeding season. Orange-fronted parakeet encounter rate will not decline."
Outcome result: "Monitoring ongoing." (Please note, this is the second year running that Orange-fronted parakeet monitoring results have not been published).
2015:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: 9%, 13%, 9%
Post: 0%, 0%, 0%
Because of poor placement of monitor lines the results cannot be relied upon to give accurate results.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control.
Possum:
Pre: No monitoring done
Post: No Monitoring done
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum control.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target:
1) "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon & Poulter Valleys at the conclusion of the 2014 / 2015 breeding season. Orange-fronted parakeet encounter rates in the Poulter will not decline."
2) "A viable orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the South Branch Hurunui at the conclusion of the 2014 / 2015 breeding season. Orange fronted parakeet encounter rate will not decline."
3) "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon & Poulter Valleys at the conclusion of the 2014 / 2015 breeding season. Orangefronted parakeet encounter rates in the Poulter will not decline."
Outcome result: "Encounter rate has not declined significantly since last season despite the massive beech mast and consequent influx of mice, rats and stoats.." (Please note, this is the third year running that Orange-fronted parakeet monitoring results have not been published).
The wording of the Orange-fronted parakeet outcome result would indicate that the parakeet numbers are declining, although this decline is not as significant as the decline in 2012-13.
2016:
https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Documents/Hazardous-Substances/1080-repor...Rat:
Pre: 4.7%, 0%.
Post: 0%, 0%,
The rat density was recorded at below the target of 5% before the 1080 was applied.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of rat control.
Possum:
Pre: No monitoring done
Post: No Monitoring done
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of possum control.
Stoat: No stoat monitoring was done.
No claims can be made as to the effectiveness of stoat control.
Orange Fronted Parakeet:
Outcome target: "A viable breeding Orange-fronted parakeet population will still be present in the Hawdon & Poulter Valleys at the conclusion of the 2016 / 2017 breeding season."
Outcome result: "No OFP's have been found in these valleys this season. There may be one OFP nest yet to be confirmed.
Over the last decade the Orange-fronted parakeet population has declined from a small, but viable, breeding population to numbers so low that normal monitoring methods are unable to count any individual birds. At the same time as the decline has been happening there has been very intensive aerial 1080 operations happening that were supposed to "save" the Orange-fronted parakeets from extinction.
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Orange Fronted Kakariki (Read 75954 times)