14 December 2015

Scottish zoology student reports on Napier bird recovery study

An academic paper lead by a Scottish zoology student has given a positive report on the process and results of the Napier Hill urban possum control programme.

The paper appears in Conservation Evidence, an open access online journal on the effectiveness of management interventions –www.conservationevidence.com (http://www.conservationevidence.com/individual-study/5555)

Lilidh Johnstone MacLeod completed the paper as part of her Masters of Science placement year for the University of Glasgow. The paper was co-authored by HBRC staff Rod Dickson and Campbell Leckie, with Eco-Vista’s Brent Stephenson and Alistair Glen from Landcare Research.

“Working with Lilidh and Landcare Research has really benefited the HUB programme. By analysing the results of our bird monitoring over the years, it further proves what Napier residents have already been telling us that fewer possums has resulted in an increase in flowers, berries and seeds in the environment, and ultimately more birds,” says Rod Dickson, HBRC Biosecurity Advisor.

Ms Johnstone MacLeod’s research focussed on the first urban possum control programme that Hawke’s Bay Regional Council, contractors and residents carried out over Napier from February to May 2009. Her work was aimed at assessing the value of the control programme for bird recovery in an urban landscape.

Ms Johnstone MacLeod has detailed the control and monitoring work. She notes that modifications to bird counting methods were needed for the urban setting where background noise could reduce the distance birds over which could be heard. She has also provided insight into the possible reasons for changes in the bird populations, including food availability and weather conditions.

Bellbird populations have tripled and tui populations increased fourfold in this urban residential area since the programme began. By comparison, Ms Johnstone McLeod’s paper reports that, over the same period, national populations of these birds were stable and therefore possum control was likely to be the main change responsible for increased bird numbers across Napier Hill.

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