Friends of the Blade
When the wild pigs that live in the bush around the Blade Reserve in Whakamārama fancy a midnight snack, they now have their own Click and Collect. Field camera footage has recently caught them visiting the possum traps on certain trap lines and, in a swift and efficient movement, pulling a dead possum out of the trap and carrying it off. The film evidence has given Friends of the Blade volunteers an explanation for the many predator traps on their lines that have clearly been set off but are empty.
Known for their intelligence, pigs are omnivores with an acute sense of smell and can quickly learn where food is easily obtained. They have no trouble exploiting the smorgasbord of possum carcasses in the predator traps or lying on the ground under the self-resetting traps.
Over the last few months, footage from the field cameras has revealed many unsuspected aspects of predator behaviour in the bush at night; the number of feral cats and how far they range across the area, a possum feeding on the carcass of another possum and rats that can chew on the bait in a Warrior trap without setting it off. Even, in the early morning hours, a startled pig hunter and his dogs pass through.
This has given the leadership group of Friends of the Blade very useful ‘intel’ as they work on effective predator control to reduce the numbers of animals that harm our native birds, insects and plants.
Anyone who is interested in joining a small and enthusiastic management group or our larger pool of equally enthusiastic predator control volunteers is very welcome to contact us for more information by emailing friendsoftheblade@gmail.com