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Research
Island EcoHealth Management – Pilot Project
Aim
 This project will establish ecosystems health maps of two islands (Tiritiri Matangi and Hauturu/Little Barrier Island) in the Hauraki Gulf north of Auckland. This information will be used to:
1. Minimise disease impacts on resident populations and disease risk associated with translocations
2. Maximise population resilience and individual robustness
3. Maximise productivity of island fauna
 The ultimate aim is to establish a model that can be applied to other species restoration sites in New Zealand and elsewhere.
Scope
Commencing in 2010, disease ecology on Tiritiri Matangi will be studied over an initial five year period using a multi-organisational/trans-disciplinary and adaptive management approach led by the NZCCM. It will focus on the environmental, pathogen and host factors that influence the health and productivity of selected threatened species resident on the island. As much as possible it will utilise and build on the health monitoring research previously conducted on these islands and that of other projects that may be in progress on the islands during the course of this project.
The two islands represent natural ‘laboratories’ well suited to ecological research and their management and environmental differences provide useful points of comparison. Both islands are predator free sanctuaries for a wide range of New Zealand’s threatened native species. Tiritiri Matangi island has been actively restored following extensive removal of native flora for farming and is a scientific reserve open to the public. By contrast, Hauturu is a wildlife sanctuary with a .much more pristine environment and a permit is required to visit it. The islands have become significant sites for breeding these species to populate other restoration sites in New Zealand and this trend is increasing. Consequently, maximising productivity and minimising disease risks are a high priority for these sites.
Collaborators
The New Zealand Centre for Conservation Medicine (NZCCM) will lead this project in partnership with Landcare Research, the University of Otago Centre for Reproduction and Genomics. The islands are managed jointly by the Department of Conservation (DOC) and community groups: the Supporters of Tiritiri Matangi (SoTM) and the Little Barrier Island (Hauturu) Supporters Trust. In addition we anticipate a close working relationship with other stakeholders including Massey University’s Ecology and Evolution Group and iwi, Ngati Wai, Ngati Whatua o Orakei, Kawerau a Maki and Ngati Paoa.
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