First Stoat Catch Milestone!

The stoat catch tally has now hit 23! The traps have only been open for ten weeks (not including the eight week shutdown due to Covid-19) so it’s exciting to exceed 20 stoats, the first trap catch milestone.

The stoat population naturally reduces over the winter months. However, numbers increase again in the spring when breeding commences. All the stoats caught on Waiheke are being examined by Dr. Andrew Veale, a vertebrate pest ecologist at Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research. Andrew analyses stoat age, sex, and diet to enable the programme to adapt for greater effectiveness, and also every stoat’s DNA to build a database of local DNA to refer to in the event of a reinvading stoat, once stoats have been eradicated.

The number of rodents (270) and hedgehogs (45) caught has increased significantly in the last month because it is colder and there is less food around, so they are attracted to the traps’ warmth, shelter, and food.