Staff and volunteers at Kaipūpū Sanctuary are on a mission to protect the natural environment and ensure native species thrive in Waitohi Picton.
Thanks to generous support from the Marlborough community, the not-for-profit’s efforts received a boost recently, with New Zealand King Salmon’s (NZKS) annual fundraiser at the Picton Maritime Festival raising $1,422 for the sanctuary.
A team of volunteers from NZKS attend the Festival each January, selling a King salmon dish that is carefully curated and expertly prepared by Chef Antony Page. All proceeds from sales of the dish are donated to a local Marlborough charity and this year, Kaipūpū Sanctuary was selected.
Festival-goers were treated to miso-cured Regal Marlborough King salmon, and Osaka-style slaw with sesame ginger dressing and wasabi crisp.
Kaipūpū team members also attended, sharing details of their important work in the community with festival attendees.
In addition, a raffle prize featuring a Regal Marlborough King Salmon voucher and Omega Plus pet food products was on offer, with proceeds from raffle ticket sales throughout the day also going to the sanctuary.
Image: Dish prepared by NZKS Chef Antony Page.
Kaipūpū is a 40-hectare sanctuary located ten minutes from Picton and is only accessible by boat. It features a 2.7 kilometre loop walking track, with views over Queen Charlotte Sound and Picton township.
In 2008, a 600-metre-long predator-proof fence was built to protect the area from pests.
Kaipūpū does not stand alone in its conservation mission. It sits at the heart of Picton Dawn Chorus – a community–driven predator control project that protects more than 4,800 hectares surrounding the sanctuary.
Image: Jan Worrall from Kaipūpū Sanctuary with NZKS team members Tiarnan Browne, Chantelle Te Haara, Steph McKay, Antony Page, and Monique Hatfull.
This wider effort helps create a safe ‘halo’ for the birds that spill out of Kaipūpū and move across the landscape, giving native species a fighting chance well beyond the sanctuary fence.
As a Rimu sponsor of Kaipūpū since 2011, NZKS supports the charity’s day-to-day operations which focus on keeping the sanctuary predator-free.
This includes prioritising trapping efforts, tree-planting, education, and community outreach.
NZKS Chief Executive Carl Carrington says the company is pleased to extend its support of Kaipūpū Sanctuary and Picton Dawn Chorus through community events such as the Picton Maritime Festival.
“The aim of New Zealand King Salmon’s community sponsorship programme is to maximise impact across our geographic footprint, with targeted efforts that reflect our company values,” says Carl.
“We take our responsibilities to te taiao – the environment we operate in – very seriously. To extend our support of Kaipūpū and the team of volunteers championing the long-term health of the local environment in Picton, is a natural fit.”
The current focus of staff and volunteers at Kaipūpū and Picton Dawn Chorus is replacing some of their manual traps with more efficient automated traps and adopting other new techniques to ensure the long-term success of the programme.
“Kaipūpū is a sanctuary for the birds who live here, it’s a sanctuary for the plants that live here, and it’s a sanctuary for people who want to come and visit,” says Anna Polson, Kaipūpū Community Outreach Coordinator.
“Four staff, three of them part-time, run Kaipūpū and Picton Dawn Chorus, so the project relies heavily on its 150 active volunteers to keep everything moving.
“Their work is making a real impact. The sanctuary has no rats or possums, and pest numbers in the wider Picton area have dropped to less than 10 percent thanks to the extensive trapping network run by both Kaipūpū and Picton Dawn Chorus.”
Further information:
To read more about the Picton Maritime Festival, click here.
For more information about Kaipūpū Sanctuary, visit the website.