MEG's 10th Birthday Big Celebrations planned for Queens Birthday Weekend June 5th - More on that soon!

Meeting to launch Coro Town Kiwi Project
Coromandel Town is to have its own kiwi care group with a 1000 hectare predator controlled kiwi habitat on the ranges between the Whangapoua Road and Driving Creek. “The Coromandel Area School Kiwi Project” gets underway this month and will give Coromandel Town locals, working with students from the Area School, the opportunity to save kiwi in Coro Town's own back yard - if you are keen and love the bush we need your help!

Environment Waikato have offered to pay for stoat traps and members of the Coromandel Town community (that’s you!) and the Area School will get the work done. We are fund raising for materials to build the trap boxes which are designed to keep people, kiwi and other birds safe from the traps.

A kiwi call count survey will be done, with the help of kids from Coromandel Area School and you the public, to get an indication of how many kiwi are already residing in the project area. That survey will be repeated annually so we can track the development of Coromandel Town’s own kiwi population. Over the next few months the school kids and adult volunteers will build over 120 trap boxes; GPS and map the trap lines, cut tracks and install the traps and once we are up and running service the traps each month. Close adult supervision and the use of a safe trap setting tool that keeps hands clear of danger will ensure safety.

Coromandel Area School principal Asha Pappiat said “We are all really excited about this; it’s a fabulous opportunity for practical learning and gives the children a vehicle to contribute to the community and environment that makes Coromandel such a special place to live."

Volunteer Groups we are hosting this year:

Global Volunteers Network
Ongoing. Regular groups of 8-10 people
come every three months and some
individuals stay for up to one month at a
time. Groups usually here for about 8 days.
Mostly involved in rat control work.

International Student Volunteers
May and June. Involved in marsh
bird monitoring and rodent monitoring, also
general weed control and trap maintenance.

Conservation Volunteers Australasia
MEG chairperson meeting with
management in late May to discuss
future iinvolvement.