Kararehe Kino - Vertebrate Pest Research Issue 24

June 2014 — Engaging Society in Pest Management

In this issue

Enhancing community engagement in the South Pacific – Adam Daigneault, Pike Brown, and the survey enumeration team in Fiji. Image – Suzie Greenhalgh.

Editorial: Importance of engaging society in pest management

The involvement of the public in all aspects of the management of pests is vital for a successful outcome.

Crowdsourcing for a predator-free New Zealand

New Zealanders face the important challenge of determining how to better control these predatory pests by using their limited resources more creatively.

Pen Holland playing Ora. Image – Caroline Thomson.

Making pest management research accessible via computer games

Ora – Save the Forest! is an online, fun-filled ecosystem adventure game based on real-life data and forest-pest-management models.

Rotokare Sanctuary - a predator-free fenced wetland and forest sanctuary in eastern Taranaki. Image – John Innes.

What motivates communities to create sanctuaries?

Publically-launched projects provide a significant new contribution to the conservation cause.

Environmental monitoring framework for New Zealand production lands

Catriona MacLeod and the Agricultural Research Group on Sustainability (ARGOS) present a proposed environmental framework for assessing sustainable land management of New Zealand’s production landscapes.

A native jewelled gecko on a tōtara in Canterbury. Image – Larry Burrows.

Non-market valuation of New Zealand biodiversity

Choice modelling, a tool used to value goods that don't have observable market prices is an appropriate tool for valuing both biodiversity and efforts to protect biodiversity.

Entrance sign Alexandra museum. Image – Grant Norbury.

Social and biodiversity benefits of predator eradication in a Central Otago community

Relocation of lizard populations in accessible areas where the public can enjoy them, be involved in the restoration process and become involved in local conservation projects.

Economic instruments for management of mongoose in Fiji

Cost-benefit analysis of mongoose control based on village survey data of losses of livestock and fruit crops.

Coastal Abel Tasman National Park showing dying wilding pine on the hillside. Image – Andrew Macalister.

Community input into a sanctuary in Abel Tasman National Park

Restoration projects undertaken by the Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust reflects similar projects undertaken by many community-based teams of volunteers throughout New Zealand.

Tane Mahuta (God of the Forests and Birds) represented in the foyer entrance carvings at Landcare Research, Lincoln by Ngai Tahu master carver George Edwards assisted by Wiremu Gray and David Johns. Image – Cissy Pan.

Cultural control of possums

How would ancient Māori have addressed the possum problem in a culturally appropriate manner if possums had co-existed with them?

Fig. 1 Citizens’ perceived risk from pests to ecosystems throughout the Hokitika and Kumara areas (based on assigned risk ‘tokens’ attributed by interviewees to areas threatened by pests).

Communities, agencies and 1080

Opportunities for enhanced community engagement in pest control decision-making.

How can science guide best-practice pest management?

Dean Anderson and colleagues from the Invasive Animals Cooperative Research Centre (IA CRC) in Australia report on how science can better guide best-practice pest management.

Recent publications

Some recent vertebrate-pest-related publications.

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