Welcome (at last!) to the Friends of Flora (FoF) newsletter number 24 for March 2006. As I missed last month's deadline it will have to do for February as well. Here we have more news of our efforts to bring the birdlife (and the snails, wetas, geckos and all the other taonga) back to the Flora.

What's My Line? This month Andy Woodall sings the praises of 'G' Line. G line starts from the Flora carpark following the track up to Lodestone and heads up steeply through beech forest until a narrow ridge is reached at G3. The ridge is fairly level and offers several scenic view points out to the tablelands and to the south and east through stunted mountain beeches. The track then dips down before climbing again and sidling round the north side of a knob. Another dip, before climbing steeply in the final assault on Lodestone. The last couple of hundred meters are on the open tops. The top is great place for lunch, but take some water to wash hands. There are magnificent views in all directions. The track then heads down steeply (it’s easy to get off track and confused here) to the bush. After a couple of hundred meters it becomes less steep and winds its way down, through mainly mountain beech, to the end at G50 on the Flora stream, just opposite Flora Hut.

Flat out whio. Last week DoC rangers Gavin Udy and Abbie McCall captured and transferred the sole juvenile blue duck/whio, now named Maryann, from the Pearse River into the Flora Stream adjacent to Gridiron Shelter. The good news is that it's a female and the even better news is that she has already been joined by an unbanded wild male. This was observed last Friday by FoF's Bill and Maryann and two keen North Island supporters, Nola and Nancy. She's a bit light for her age and, on close inspection, her bill is slightly misshapen, so DoC staff will be keeping a very close eye on her.

Earlier in the month saw a ceremony led by local iwi in connection with the release of eleven captive reared (from wild eggs) whio into Nuggety Creek near Courthouse Flat (Tadmor end of the Wangapeka Track). Although one bird died of causes unknown within days of release (postmorten results are pending) the other ten have dispersed throughout the Wangapeka. Mostly females, they too have quickly attracted the attention of resident wild males.

Pests peak. Pest kill totals for January were 29 stoats, 33 rats, 6 mice, a ferret and 14 possums. That's our highest tally for stoats in a single month as well as our first ferret. DoC rangers caught off their lines (D, H, E and I beyond Gridiron) a total of 17 stoats and 14 rats.

FoF's pest kills for February were:
11 stoats (total since Feb 2002 = 290)
36 rats (total = 719)
12 mice (total = 608)
10 possums (total = 186)
1 weasel (total = 7)

With the exception of possums, these figures are all up on the same month last year when we got rid of 6 stoats, 14 rats, 2 mice and 15 possums.

FoF 'n' FoR. It's not a competition or anything, but Friends of Rotoiti's Bryce Buckland letter to the Nelson Mail of March 24 reports their totals (since December 2001) of "303 stoats, 37 ferrets, 184 rats, 2636 mice, 72 possums, 56 rabbits and 480 hedgehogs." At least we don't get rabbits and hedgehogs in the Flora...

More from FoF next month. Check out our website at www.fof.org.nz

Ivan Rogers FoF Committee