• Meet Ruud Kleinpaste, the 'Bugman'

    "This has to be the most inspiring project on the planet"

    Ruud Kleinpaste is dedicated to protecting our natural environment and building conservationists of the future. He says "If we are serious about restoring our New Zealand, we have to be serious about the control of introduced predators. There's no way our native animals can thrive with these carnivores sharing their habitat". He is on the Executive Committee for Kids Restore New Zealand

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Kids Restore the Kepler

Imagine a 3000 hectare prime piece of habitat made safe for NZ birds, insects, lizards and bats. Imagine a brilliant reserve that happens to also be one of Aotearoa's Great Walks. And now imagine that the driving force behind this remarkable restoration project is the next generation of New Zealanders!

 

Kids Restore the Kepler is a major conservation project with a difference. As well as having conservation goals seeking to restore birdsong in the area, the project also has a strong education focus. The project aims to help Fiordland's young people, from pre-school through to college, develop knowledge, values and skills so they can be confident, connected and actively involved in caring for their environment.

 

Working in conjunction with partners, sponsors, businesses and the community, Fiordland's young people intend to be the kids who restore the Kepler!


Photo: Venture Scouts accompanied by Pete Barrow and Pete McMurtrie (DOC) having a well earned rest from placing 472 trap boxes across a 3000ha area. Before the traps were set, they were 'pre baited' to draw in resident stoats to using the tunnels as a food source. Some were caught on hidden cameras:

Watch footage of the Kepler's unwanted residents

Read the baseline bird monitoring report (PDF, 6.02MB)