Rare Birds’ Sole Colony Found
(New Zealand Press Association) BLENHEIM, June 14. The discovery of a breeding colony of rare birds in Marlborough was described today as of the same importance as the discovery of the notornis in Fiordland.
The Marlborough Catchment Board this morning dealt with a request from the Department of Internal Affairs for co-operation in safeguarding the nesting colony of Huttons shearwaters. The board decided to give all the assistance it could.
The department said the colony was between 4500 and
5000 ft in the upper Kowhai Valley on the south-west face of Mt. Uwerau in the seaward Kaikouras.
It is the only known breeding colony of this species. The burrows were dug into silty soil beneath tussock, snow grass, and carpet grass. The burrowing caused some soil to slide downhill and this was accentuated by the heavy population of browsing animals such as deer, chamois, goats and occasionally thar. Gullying had already started on the drier faces of the hill and the suitable burrowing habitat for the birds was being steadily reduced. Few other burrowing areas existed. It was therefore Important for the welfare of the colony that every attempt be made to protect the existing vegetation from grazing by stock or by wild animals. The department asked the board’s help in this.
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Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31086, 15 June 1966, Page 5
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217Rare Birds’ Sole Colony Found Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31086, 15 June 1966, Page 5
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