This cache brings you to Te Rae o Atiu, a predator-proof fenced sanctuary specially constructed for protection of the endangered Hutton's Shearwater bird, which breeds only in this region.
View of Te Rae o Atiu Hutton's Shearwater sanctuary area showing predator-proof fence
Hutton's shearwater (Puffinus huttoni; also known in Māori as kaikōura tītī) is a medium-sized ocean-going seabird in the family Procellariidae. Its range is Australian and New Zealand waters, but it breeds only in mainland New Zealand. Its conservation status is "Endangered", because there are just two remaining natural breeding colonies, both located in the Seaward Kaikōura Range. Six other shearwater colonies have been wiped out by introduced pigs. Hutton's shearwater is the only seabird in the world that is known to breed in alpine areas. Conservation measures for the bird include community initiatives to rescue birds that crash-land at night on streets in Kaikōura, and the establishment of this protected area on the Kaikōura Peninsula with predator-proof fence, man-made burrows, and translocation of fledglings from the remaining colonies.
The bird was scientifically described by Matthews in 1912 but few details were known about where it bred, its breeding biology or the size of the population. However there were anecdotal reports from high country farmers, hunters and various others of ‘muttonbird’ burrows at high elevations in the Seaward Kaikōura Range behind Kaikōura, and in the early 1960s Geoff Harrow, a mountaineer and ornithologist, located eight breeding colonies in that area. From 1964 to the mid-1980s, he visited the colonies each year to study the biology of the birds and monitor them. By 2000, only two colonies remained in the mountains - colonies at risk from introduced mammals and natural disasters. Deer, chamois and goats trample the nesting burrows, pigs and stoats eat the eggs, chicks and adults, while natural hazards such as avalanche, fire and disease threaten the colonies
Geoff Harrow with Hutton's Shearwater chick
Geoff alerted the Wildlife Service, now the Department of Conservation (DOC) to the plight of the birds. DOC then actively managed the predators and pests that threatened the survival of the birds - challenging work in the remote alpine environment.
Given the survival risks to the birds, translocating chicks to a man-made and accessible colony on the Kaikōura Peninsula was a sensible plan. In 2005, a trial translocation of chicks began and continued for the next three years. Unfortunately some of the chicks were killed by cats and a specialised predator-proof fence was needed. Led by the Hutton's Shearwater Charitable Trust (HSCT) and with the backing of the Kaikōura community, the money was quickly raised and the fence was completed by February 2010.
After fledging, the chicks fly to the coast of Australia and return about three years later to this new colony to breed. By 2014, a total of 496 chicks had been translocated and increasing numbers have been returning each year to breed. In just a few years there should be enough returning birds to make this a sustainable colony.
Lots more information is available on the signboards at the location of this cache, and here at Wikipedia
About this Cache:
The cache is a 2 litre new-style (more waterproof) Sistema container with a smaller one inside containing the log. It is situated near to the signboards giving information about this place. It is approximately half-way along the Kaikōura Peninsula Walkway between Point Kean and South Bay, with the more scenic access - with great views from the clifftops out to sea and of a large seal colony below - being from the Point Kean end.