Beyond the Edge Beyond the Bar: 13.08 Maungatautari Eco-Island: Alien Invasions

One of Winston Churchill’s more famous speeches — the ‘Never Give Up Speech', if I may call it that — was never delivered, at least not in the fashion (three words repeated three times) and at the place (Oxford) that has entered modern myth. In the midst of Britain’s fight for survival against the Nazis, Churchill did, indeed, deliver a brief speech at Harrow School on 29 October 1941. In that speech the phrase ‘never give in’ was thrice repeated or enlarged upon. The gist of the speech was this: don’t ever give in unless honor or good sense dictates otherwise. Churchill’s mythic speech came to mind this past weekend when I along with others had occasion to watch Atu, a spotted brown kiwi, being fed by a keeper at the Otorohanga Kiwi House & Native Bird Park. Otorohanga is a small town south of Te Awamutu.

The keeper, employed in that task for three years, was still unaccepted by Atu. Atu put up an unforgettably relentless resistance to the keeper’s ‘invasion’ of her cage. She thrust her pointy beak at the keeper’s boots and at her calves. She kicked the keeper in front and from behind. She did all these things again and again. As hungry as Atu must have been, she but twice or thrice darted to the tin plate of morsels, then quickly returned to the attack. She didn’t stop attacking until the keeper left the enclosure. The only thing lacking was the good sense by which Churchill had qualified his admonition to the Harrow boys. In every other way Atu’s behavior was Churchillian to the max and all the more astonishing because of the size disparity between keeper and kiwi.

When the keeper joined the spectators, who’d watched from the other side of the glass, she told us that kiwis are intensely territorial. Indeed. And that Atu, while warm and cuddly with other keepers long known to her, had yet to strike up a familial warmth with this particular keeper. Kiwis aren’t known for ferocious, unprovoked, and unwarranted attacks. They are nocturnal creatures, rarely encountered in any event, pretty much minding their own business. But as we saw, their own version of ‘never give in’ can come out in the right circumstances.

All of which raises the question, why are kiwis (among other New Zealand endemic birds) threatened with extinction? Part of the answer lies in the clearance of their native forests to make way for agriculture and human habitation. But a more insidious cause of kiwi decline (and of the disappearance of whole species of New Zealand birds) has been the predatory behavior of the numerous mammals introduced to New Zealand, whose only mammals before human arrival were bats and seals, along the coasts. First came the dogs, pigs, and (inadvertently) rats brought by the Māori. Eventually, rabbits were introduced. And then to control the rabbits, ‘possums’ were introduced. These ferret-like creatures aren’t to be confused with North American possums. The story of alien creatures introduced to the country is far more complex than space or my ignorance allows. But you get the idea.

Not only were New Zealand’s animals affected, so were plants. After all, many plants depend on specific animals for propagation and sustenance. Native forests (as distinct from plantation forests) have been reduced to 1% of the land, much of it mountainous or on small, offshore islands. Kiwi eggs and kiwi hatchlings provide easy targets for the likes of the possum. And so, absent even more human interventions, the kiwis (and other endemic species) are threatened with extinction.

Should they and other endangered animal and plant species be saved? The easy answer seems to be ‘yes’ but ‘yes’ is costly. Even costlier perhaps might be a ‘no’. I’ll leave the arguments for ‘yes’ and ‘no’ and for 'how' and 'why' for perhaps another time. In any event one can’t help but note that at least in the central North Island the preservation efforts seem to have come from the bottom up, from local initiatives. The Otorohanga Kiwi House germinated from an idea tossed around by a bricklayer, pharmacist, and physician in the late 1960s. Eventually various local organizations, groups, and funders were drawn in to bring the idea to fruition in 1971.

An even grander scheme with even broader support across the North Island and New Zealand has been the creation and development of something called the Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust (‘MEIT’). The MEIT is a community-based effort drawing in support from volunteer groups and organizations (green groups, the Lions Club, etc.), corporations, private parties, and governments. Much of the trust land incorporates land on Mount Maungatautari (or ‘the Maunga’) previously set aside by the Waipa District (in the Waikato Region) as a scenic preserve.

In the MEIT, 34 square kilometers (13.1 square miles) are protected by 47 kilometers (29.2 miles) of so-called 'Xcluder Pest Proof Fence', a special, impenetrable fence developed reportedly in response to the MEIT project. Following the removal or extermination of alien species on the Maunga, numerous endemic New Zealand species have been re-introduced, including kiwi. Kiwi hatchlings have now survived on the Maunga, thanks to the eradication efforts protected by the special fence. Additional developmental history of the Maunga 'eco-island' (if you will) is provided in Wikipedia.

Following, below are some pictures taken this past weekend on or near the Maunga, when Jean and I and friends visited the eco-island. None of our pictures are intended to capture the beauty and magnificence of the place. Only a visit can do that, I suppose. As it happens, the MEIT is conducting a photo competition to gather striking photos for its 2014 calendar. Capturing the beauty of the Maunga forest is no easy task, despite the beauty that abounds there.

Smaller eco-islands exist in New Zealand. Presently the MEIT is the largest eco-island on New Zealand’s mainland. One can’t help but wonder whether some day the Maunga will be but one of a number of similarly sized islands that constitute an eco-archipelago crowning New Zealand. Whether something like that ever happens will be for Kiwis to decide, of course. Siting and funding eco-islands surely is no easy task. The commitment, toil, and treasure required to develop the Maunga eco-island may at times have made for a seeming Mission Impossible.

In looking forward to comparable efforts elsewhere it may be best to remember Churchill’s Harrow speech, not as it was spoken but as it is (apparently) remembered in contemporary culture. ‘Never give in’ almost surely alludes (as Churchill meant it to allude) to an Enemy. But ‘Never give up’ — as Churchill’s speech is remembered — also allows for the possibility that our undoing may not be from without but from within, from apathy or indifference or ignorance or despair.

I suspect these ‘spiritual vices’ (if I may call them that) were the most significant hurdles to be overcome in realizing the Maunga eco-island. But thanks (in part) to some Churchillian Kiwis, the Maunga eco-island came alive and is sustained. New Zealand is the better for it, thanks be to God. And visitors are welcome; just no alien animal species, please.

Warm regards,

Tim & Jean