Potted history of Seabird Studies on Mauao

Many thanks to Paul Cuming for his fascinating account on Sunday (21 January) of the work that goes on at nighttime on our maunga, and the history of the avian study of which many of us are possibly unaware.

Paul and Ōi on Mauao

Perhaps the longest-running seabird study on the mainland of Aotearoa is also one of innovation, as the population of ōi (grey-faced petrel) has been part of a wider experiment to translate chicks from one site to another.

Transferred oi chick returned as adult

In 2000, thirty ōi chicks were shifted from Motuotau to Mauao to help Department of Conservation staff fine-tune translocation skills for similar work with rarer species, namely the Chatham Island Petrel. Six individuals were successful in returning to their ‘new’ homes – one is pictured here with a red leg band. Artificial burrows were placed on the Northern slopes of Mauao. The experiment was deemed a success - thirty was quite a low number to garner such outcomes as six returning, with the expected mortality of youngsters. As with many seabird species, recruitment of young inexperienced potential breeders is a significant issue. Chatham Petrels are now successfully breeding on Pitt Island in a pest free sanctuary. All thanks in part to the ōi of Mauao.