Te Tatauranga o ngā Manu Māra o Aotearoa
How citizen science is helping to reveal the state of our feathered friends. This is an excerpt from Ellen Ryker’s piece in the Spinoff’s weekly environmental newsletter Future Proof. The annual Garden Bird Survey took place last week, calling on citizen scientists across Aotearoa to count the birds in their backyard, or at their local … Read more
New Zealanders, do your duty and count birds: Tūī: one.KELLY HODEL / WAIKATO TIMES This is an exert from a piece by columnist Virginia Fallon in The Post. OPINION: Sparrow; sparrow; seagull; sparrow; pigeon; sparrow: being a citizen scientist is boring. For 20 minutes now, sparrow, I’ve been standing in the mud and doing my … Read more
This story by John Lewis originally appeared in the Otago Daily Times. While participating in the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey is obviously good for birds, it turns out it may also be good for our mental health. The country’s longest-running annual citizen science project begins today, and it is hoped thousands of people will … Read more
This story was originally published by RNZ. The country’s longest running citizen science project, the New Zealand Garden Bird Survey, started Saturday. People are being encouraged to head out into their gardens over the next nine days to spend an hour counting all the birds they see and hear. The survey helps scientists understand the … Read more
This story by Will Harvie originally appeared in The Press. Bird watchers and gardeners are being urged to keep a lookout for feathered visitors as the annual garden bird survey kicks off with hopes strong that tūī sightings will be up again in Canterbury. The annual survey by Manaaki Whenua-Landcare Research encourages all New Zealanders … Read more
This story by John Lewis originally appeared in the Otago Daily Times. Ornithologists and bird lovers are aflutter after learning kererū, fantail and tui populations have exploded in the southern regions over the past decade. Survey founder Dr Eric Spurr said results from the 2022 New Zealand Garden Birds Survey showed there had been “positive … Read more
This is an excerpt from a story by William Hansby on Stuff. We’re seeing a lot more native birds in our garden at the moment, including pīwakawaka (fantail), tūī, kōtare (kingfisher) and pihipihi (silvereyes), but they don’t seem to stay for very long. So it was with delight that I read this week the Department of … Read more
The Gisborne Herald interviewed Dr Angela Brandt, Manaaki Whenua researcher and ecologist, following the release of the 2021 New Zealand Garden Bird Survey report. Results from a national bird survey show a positive trend for native birds like kererū, unlike introduced species such as starlings, which have shown a decline over the years. “What’s exciting … Read more
Dunedin and Otago people have traditionally topped the pecking order as the country’s most enthusiastic participants in this Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research-led survey, now in its 15th year. And last year’s Covid-19 lockdown, and more time spent at home watching the birds, may have been an unexpectedly powerful factor in the big survey response, … Read more
TVNZ’s OneNews shares how we can get involved with the NZ Garden Bird Survey, the results from the 2019 report and interviews Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research ecologists. Bird-watchers asked to keep an eagle eye out this week as part of annual survey New Zealanders are being called to help count our bird population as … Read more
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