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Ngahere gecko transferred from Belmont Quarry to Mana Island

Ngahere geckos transferred from Belmont Quarry to Mana Island

Winstone Aggregates tranferred 23 Ngahere geckos from an area marked for extension at Belmont Quarry to Mana Island over the weekend.

‘From initial planning, to escorting the geckos on the boat, many people were involved and helped to ensure the geckos were transferred safely to their new home,’ said Ian Wallace of Winstone Aggregates.

The project to ‘re-home’ the geckos was a success due to the support of EcoGecko Consultants, Taranaki Whānui, Ngāti Toa, Friends of Mana Island, Wellington Zoo and DOC.

As part of extending Wellington’s Belmont Quarry, Winstone Aggregates were granted a Wildlife Authority to collect and transfer as many forest geckos as possible to Mana Island. Winstone Aggregates is also contributing to pest control and re-planting in the adjoining Belmont Forest Park, and protecting lizard habitat across 10 ha of their land.

During the translocation process, the geckos had a quarantine ‘holiday’ at Wellington Zoo, where they received expert care from the vets at The Nest Te Kōhanga. EcoGecko and Friends of Mana Island built a ‘soft release’ fence on the island to provide a temporary safe enclosure for the geckos to settle in.

Local iwi Taranaki Whānui supported Winstones to gift the geckos into the care of Ngāti Toa on Mana Island. A welcome ceremony recognised that mokomoko/ lizards are taonga species for Māori and are to be treated with care.

‘Mana Island was an ideal place for Winstone to re-home the geckos as it is pest-free and did not have any Ngahere geckos living on the Island. Their introduction has brought the total numbers of lizard species found here to 11’ said Jeff Hall, DOC Island Ranger.

The Friends of Mana Island and Ngāti Toa, with support from EcoGecko, will undertake post-release monitoring to make sure the translocation is a success.

ENDS

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