Why it matters
In Northland, many great native forests and their wildlife are collapsing.
The forests and their wildlife populations – native birds, bats, lizards and bugs - are collapsing. But there is a small window of opportunity to save these trees and bring Northland’s forests back to life. We want to see them exploding with life again.
Red-fronted kākāriki. Credit: Luc Hoogenstein
Introduced possums and rats together with feral cats, stoats, ferrets, weasels and hedgehogs have been progressively wiping out the native wildlife.
Most of this happens while we sleep and goes unseen. When the sun goes down, thousands of possums relentlessly consume the forest canopy, slowly killing ancient forest giants like tōtara, pūriri, pōhutukawa and northern rātā.
These forests can recover when pests are removed. But it will take commitment and action.
We are calling for an increase in pest control funding for the Department of Conservation, to work with hapū and communities and bring 116,000 hectares of Northland’s significant native forests back to life over the next ten years.
The magic of leaf litter
The forgotten forests of Northland
Totara and kohekohe
Forest collapse in Russell State Forest
Forest collapse in Whangaroa Forest
Flowering Northern rātā
What can you do
You can help us stand up for nature before our forests fall further by making a donation.
Your gift will mean we can continue to put pressure on the government to bring Northland’s native forests back to life and will help us build on work with hapū, government agencies, groups and individuals working together to turn the situation around.
There is a rising tide of people on the ground fighting this collapse with pest control, but we need your help to save the forests too.
