Let’s crow about soaring bird numbers in the capital

Five-minute bird counts have been carried out at 100 permanent count-stations across Wellington city reserves since in 2011, monitoring trends in diversity, abundance and distribution of native forest birds.

Native birds outnumber introduced birds across Pōneke parks and reserves. The most significant changes are with kārearea / New Zealand falcon encounter rates increasing from just one sighting a year, to up to six per year since 2021. This reflects the increasing observations of kārarea pairs sighted, and nesting activity witnessed by the community in recent years.

Previously reported declines in the average annual counts of tauhou / silvereyes and pīpīwharauroa / shining cuckoos are also in the process of stabilising following years of decline due to urbanisation and predator activity.

Predator Free Wellington Phase 2, and further expansion in the wider animal pest control network across the city, will lead to increases in the number of native birds we encounter and their distribution across the city over the coming years.

Over 100,000 native plants have also been added to our reserves every year through the restoration programme, providing habitat, more food and safe nesting sites for our feathered friends.

Since 2011, there have been substantial increases in the average annual counts of kererū (243% increase), kākā (170% increase), tūī (93% increase) and pīwakawaka / New Zealand fantail (37% increase).

The annual monitoring report provides useful information and demonstrates how successful the many Council supported initiatives to care for nature in the city are, says Urban Ecology Manager, Daniela Biaggio.

“These results suggest that the presence of large ‘source’ populations of native forest birds in Zealandia Te Māra a Tāne, together with increasing predator control being carried out in Pōneke, is driving spectacular recoveries in several previously rare or locally extinct native forest bird species in the city.

“A big thanks to every Wellingtonian who is trapping in their home, servicing a line in a reserve, restoring habitat or planting natives in their backyards. Because of your mahi we can now wake to the beautiful call of our native manu rather than the noise of our alarms.”

The increase in the availability of online tools to record nature observations has also led to a steady increase in the number of citizen science bird records available online.

This data was combined with the more systematic five-minute bird count data to help detect changes in bird distribution in the city over time. To date, residents and visitors to Pōneke have contributed over 299,700 bird observations to online databases and projects like New Zealand eBird, the New Zealand Bird Atlas, iNaturalist and the Great Kererū Count.