“It’s a tough job but we’ve made real progress. The traps are working, the birds are coming back. That’s what it’s all about.” Mike Walker manages all things predator control for the Forest Lifeforce Restoration Trust. His role is funded by Jobs for Nature, which Forest Lifeforce successfully applied to receive through Save the Kiwi. Mike was hired to install an additional 516 traps at one of the Trust’s land blocks, Pohokura, building on the trapping network the Trust had already established. At seven traps per kilometre of trapline, around a third of the 11,348-hectare estate is now “a dangerous place to be for mustelids, possums and rats”. While the Jobs for Nature programme ends in mid-2025, the future looks bright for Mike. Mike has set up his own business, Whio Contracting, now employees several people to carry out pest and predator control across the Hawke’s Bay and will continue working with the Trust. “It was shock at the time but I reckon that bloody coronavirus did me the biggest favour. Now I get to hang out in some of the coolest places in the country, doing something that’s really worthwhile. “But the Forest Lifeforce Restoration Trust, Save the Kiwi and Jobs for Nature funding really made it possible. And for that I’m so grateful.” Read the full story here >>> https://lnkd.in/gyWcASc9 #savethekiwi #jobsfornature #mahimōtetaiao #departmentofconservation Department of Conservation (DOC)
