A big thank you to everyone who came last Thursday evening to celebrate the journey towards a predator free Waiheke. It was stoat-ally great to see so many people attend and bring their excellent questions with them. A big thank you to Dr Andrew Veale for his insight into stoat genetics and for the in-depth analysis of Waiheke stoats.

On this, the 24th of February, we celebrate the collaborative efforts of the island-wide stoat eradication project as it reaches its second anniversary. Over the past two years, we have learned a lot. As a team, we are continuing the work, committed to the common goal of tracking down every last stoat.

It’s Auckland anniversary and while a public holiday is a nice way to mark the occasion, we want to take the opportunity to celebrate the region where worldwide predator-free began.

2021 has been a rollercoaster of a year. Some months have been exhilarating, gaining momentum towards a number of collective goals, while others have chugged away slowly in the background. It’s been a big year and as the ride of 2021 draws to a close, we take a moment to look back on the highlights that made it memorable.

Collaboration island-wide efforts have resulted in the downfall of the 100th Waiheke stoat since early 2020. We are celebrating the collaborative efforts of delivery partners who are making milestones in the island stoat eradication possible.

Given the recent move to Alert Level 4, here is an update on the Waiheke eradication programmes.

The stoat eradication team is excited to have hit the 90 stoat milestone! Read what Elaine Murphy, DOC Principle Scientist, thinks…

Stoats have been caught all over the island, with the majority caught near the coast or a waterway. Check out our stoat catch heat map and density graph.

Did you know that recent genetic analysis shows that stoats on Waiheke are inbred? Dr Andrew Veale has analysed the DNA from stoats caught in Auckland, around New Zealand and Europe.