This autumn's newsletter brings news of esteemed visitors to the islands, as well as the launch of our guided wildlife tours, the relaunch of Project Island Song merch, and a new feature celebrating our business members.

Read on for all this, plus some good news from our pest surveillance programme, and much more besides!

On Wednesday 4th February we were honoured to host Dame Cindy Kiro and Dr Richard Davies at Otehei Bay on Urupukapuka.

The visit was an opportunity for us to show the results of the project's mahi over the past two decades, and share how this has been achieved thanks to the strong partnership between community, hapū, and government.

Their Excellencies were particularly interested in hearing more about the role of New Zealand's world-leading conservation dog programme in keeping these islands pest-free, as well as many others around the country.

March saw our biggest month of pest detection work in the year, with our monthly rodent checks supplemented by dogs trained to discover plague skinks, Argentine ants, and mustelids.

Since their handlers were pleased to report no finds, this March also marked over a year since the last pest incursion (a dead rat found in a Moturua trap in February 2025). This is the longest period without an incursion since the islands became pest-free in 2009, and while we don't want to jinx it, we felt this was an achievement worth sharing.

This is testament to the extensive pest control on the adjacent mainland, as well as the efforts of our whole community in practicing good biosecurity when visiting the islands.

While this is a great milestone to reach, it is inevitable that pest incursions will occur again in future, so it is vital that we remain vigilant in delivering our pest surveillance programme through these invaluable pest detection dogs, as well as traps and tracking tunnels. As visitors to the islands, you can do your bit by remembering to Give your Gear the All-Clear before heading out there.

After a fair hiatus, we're excited to share that you can now order Project Island Song t-shirts, hoodies, hats, kids' gear, and more, through our refreshed merchandise store.

When you place an order, it will be printed-to-order by Digitees, and shipped directly from them to you, with a portion of each sale going to support our work on the islands.

For now, the merch store features a number of classic Project Island Song designs, available across a range of products, in different styles and colours.

We have some new designs in the works that we're very excited about too - watch this space!

In case you missed last week's email, Project Island Song is now offering guided wildlife tours on the islands, available to book through our website for the very first time.

Led by our experienced guides, our small group private tours give you the best chance of experiencing the incredible wildlife that has returned to Ipipiri, as well as hearing the fascinating stories of these special islands, and how the community has brought the birdsong back.

All proceeds from our guided tours will go directly towards our mission, so you can be sure that while you enjoy the results of the project's work so far, your visit is supporting this mahi to continue into the future.

Thanks to everyone for supporting the Project through your calendar purchases again this year. It's been another great edition with beautiful quality photos generously donated by Darren Markin, and we're delighted to know it will be featuring on many walls all around the globe!

Special thanks are owed to our vendors for their fantastic support in selling the calendars again this year, their selfless support is essential to this whole exercise and we couldn't do it without them:

We still have a few calendars remaining, which are now available at half price - only $10 - through our website, or at the Project Island Song office. If you haven't got around to getting yours yet, or you'd like to buy another as a gift, you can help us find them all a good home here.

We are beginning a new series to celebrate the many fantastic businesses that have chosen to become members of Project Island Song. By signing up for membership, businesses become an active participant in the restoration of the islands of Ipipiri, helping our region and our people to thrive.

Our first member to feature is Carino Wildlife Cruises, a small, family-owned marine tourism conservation business based in Paihia. Carino has been a member of Project Island Song for more than 5 years. We asked them to tell us why they chose to become members of Project Island Song, and what the Project means to their business:

"Joining Project Island Song was a natural fit, as their work restoring island ecosystems directly supports the wildlife and habitats we rely on. Becoming a member allows us to actively contribute to meaningful conservation outcomes, not just observe them. It also gives us the opportunity to share these stories with our guests.

Beyond our membership, the Carino Wildlife Cruises team actively supports Project Island Song through hands-on conservation efforts. We regularly carry out beach clean ups on the islands and contribute to informal bird monitoring by recording sightings during our visits. 

Being part of Project Island Song strengthens our connection to the environment we operate in and enhances the quality of the experiences we offer. Healthy ecosystems mean richer wildlife encounters for our guests and a more meaningful story to share. Ultimately, it ensures the long-term protection of the natural environment that our business depends on."

Moth plant season is in full swing around Northland, and this year Northland Regional Council is running a competition with cash prizes for the person or team who removes the most seed pods and vines.

As one of our most problematic weeds, we're getting stuck into the moth plant problems on the islands, with more than 1,000 seed pods (each containing up to 1,000 wind-dispersed seeds) already collected, logged, and disposed of.

The competition runs until 15th May so you still have plenty of time to get involved.

Find out more about the competition and sign up here.

Could you help us tackle the weeds on the islands? Find out more and sign up to help out here.

In February we received a somewhat surprising report from a resident in Parekura Bay, between Russell and Rawhiti, that a tīeke/North Island saddleback had flown into their house (and then safely out again).

Since the received wisdom is that tīeke won't generally fly across a body of open water, we'd be keen to hear about any further sightings of tīeke that have made their way beyond Moturua or Urupukapuka.

If you're in the area, please keep an eye and an ear out for their distinctive chatter (listen here)!

In February we took part in the Great Backyard Bird Count, a global citizen science event led by Cornell University, monitoring birds on Moturua.

Globally, participants identified a staggering 8,257 species of birds over the 4 days of the event, with over a million people taking part.

You can hear a little more about the event, including a brief snippet of interview with our General Manager, Laura, on this BBC radio piece here.

Next year's event will take place from 12th - 15th February 2027 - you can sign up to take part here!

In early February we were visited by Karen Varnham from the Royal Society for the  Protection of Birds in the UK.

Karen works on the Isles of Scilly, an archipelago 45km off the southwest tip of Cornwall, which is the first landing site in the UK for many migratory birds.

The Isles are working towards becoming pest-free and Karen was keen to learn about the story of the Project so far.

Thanks to everyone who came along to the fantastic Toi Tū exhibition at Haratu Kororāreka Marae over the summer.

The exhibition displayed many works by our local artists depicting our local wildlife, and as such chose to support Project Island Song as its charity partner.

Huge thanks to Lana Kingsbeer for donating this beautiful tūī print as a prize for the exhibition raffle, and congratulations to Margaret, who was lucky enough to take it home!