The start of Tui Nature Reserve

In 1994 we where spending time in the breathtaking Outer Pelorus Sound, part of the Marlborough Sounds. With our passion for the native bush, exploring this part of the world was a real treat. On one of my trips I was following an animal track towards the top of a hill which seems to me, the end of the land. I was just minutes away from an experience that changed our lives. On top, I discovered a viewpoint from were you can see the whole area. Expecting to see the sea, I was stunned to see the end of a peninsula with a forest in the middle. This viewpoint was visited many times after this day by us and later by many visitors. For years this " plateau forest " was almost inaccessible. Additionally, since the bush is located 180 meters above sea level, it is hardly visible from sea. The remoteness of the area (no road access) was probably the reason that huge trees, some approx 900 years old, were still around.

But from the beginning it was clear that the bush was heavily under attack. Predators like possums, stoats, rats, pigs and deer had a huge impact on the bush and its wildlife. Almost no birds and much of the trees covered with a grey canopy was evidence that action was needed to save this forest. We decided to buy this land. With limited knowledge and budget, we started a low key pest management scheme. Our knowledge and skills were boosted due to the help of The Department of Conservation, books and possum trappers. To restore the circle in the bush we decided not to use any poison (except for wasp control). This turned out to be a slow process, a lot of hard work and many hours of labour. Several scientists visiting our bush noticed the variety of trees and plants despite the destruction of the pest. Also in the process we realised that as a private landowner of native bush, the protection status in a legal way is nil. The answer was an Open Space Covenant. The Queen Elizabeth II National Trust took care of this, they registered 38 hectares of the land as a covenant, legally on our title. An Open Space Covenant is a legal agreement between a landowner and the Trust. The Covenants are registered against the land title and are binding, not only to the present owner, but all subsequent owners or leaseholders.

 

Progress

Slowly we were making progress with our restoration. With our own limited budget and donations, possum trap-lines and stoat traps were installed. Pig hunting parties were appointed and we took care of the clearing of " old mans beard" a fast growing climber which covers whole trees and kills them. After 5 years we saw the first results, the bush was bouncing back! The recovering trees and their fruits were attracting the birds again. Even the Kohe Kohe forest is recovering, this is great because on the mainland Kohe Kohe is threatened with extinction in the medium to long term by possums. Representatives from Q.E.II and D.O.C. visited the place and saw the evidence of new wildlife.

 

Maintenance

To generate an income to secure the maintenance we made a plan to build accommodation to attract tourists, nature lovers and people who like to experience a different life-style. The Marlborough Districts Council granted us a permit for a small Eco-campground, two cabins and a cottage with a capacity of 20 visitors. The idea is to limit visitors numbers to guarantee an unique experience.

 

A dream come true

Together with the owners of the neighbouring land we extended the pest control over the whole peninsula and its coastline. The whole peninsula is experiencing growing numbers of Wood Pigeons, Bell Bird, Tui, Grey Warbler, Silvereye, Morepork, Weka, etc, etc. Even the NZ Falcon is a regular in the area. A recent survey from the Marlborough Districts Council was very promising regarding the future of the wilderness park. An ecologist and a botanist wrote a very positive report about the ecological condition and supporting the future vision to physically protect the peninsula with a predator fence. This would give the potential for the re-introduction of various rare and characteristic birds and other species. We are still in the process of many improvements like protecting the Blue Penguin on the coastline and wasp control.

 

We would like to thank everybody involved in this conservation project so far, for their help, support, donations or any other kind of input to keep us going.

We will keep this page updated with further developments!

With Tui greetings,
Ellen, Brian and our two young rangers Leona and Liam