KAPITI ISLAND.

Otaki Mail, 13 August 1923, Page 3

KAPITI ISLAND.

The report of the Lands and .Survey Department’s scenery-prcseiration branch states that as a result of the visit of tho Advisory Board to Ivupiti last year work was undertaken that is expected to assist in tho regeneration of the forest and the protection of the native birds. A fence had been erected oil portion of the boundary between the land owned by tho Crown and that owned by the Natives, with the object of excluding all stock from the sanctuary. The new fence must be extended or tho oki ono substantially repaired, and it was hoped Lintt this would be done during the coming year. Two hundred and seventy-nine goats were killed during the year. They are not now present in such numbers as to do serious damage, but the work of extermination was an obvious necessity and must be continued. A more pressing matter was the removal or the destruction of sheep. Some of thorn were the property of Native owners who use tire native land at the north end of tlie island for grazing purposes, but most of them were the offspring of animals that ran wild many years ago. Ample time and opportunity had been given for the removal of all privately owned stock, and more vigorous measures for ridding the sanctuary of their presence would now be adopted. Opossums had been greatly reduced in numbers. During the year 2292 were taken, and the tally for the coming season was expected to fall much below this. Only two cats were seen, and both were destroyed. As a safe retreat for our native birds the sanctuary was fulfilling its purpose satisfactorily. Species now rarely "seen on the mainland were present in fair numbers, and tho. native woodpigeon certainly showed a marked increase. The Advisory Board was con--1 sidering the introduction of species not now represented on the island, and I this matter would be followed up dur- ; ing the coming year.