There aren’t many jobs with us that Jack hasn’t turned his hand to. Remote island ranger, species monitor, trapper, hunter, ranger trainer, systems designer, operations manager – you name it, Jack has probably done it. He’s deeply passionate about conservation and has accumulated a lot of great stories. 

In this episode Jack shares stories about powelliphanta, kōkako, Tūturuatu, Canterbury Mudfish, Mana Island flax weevil, Alseuosmia the mimic plant, akeake the giant daisy, ongaonga the serious stinging nettle; as well as diesel grass, Rockhopper penguins, sea lions, kiwi, and parea/Chatham Island pigeon. And more! It’s a chocka block 39 minutes.

• The bird sound in this episode is the Parea/Chatham Island pigeon
• The music used is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters

Did you know that Aotearoa’s rarest parakeet is a small, forest-dwelling bird, and there are only about 360 estimated to be left in the wild? The kākāriki karaka, or orange-fronted parakeet are in serious trouble. Listen and learn about the work to monitor and track this species, control predators in critical areas, and boost numbers with captive breeding.

Plus hear how Andrew got started in this specific field and has become the office ‘cat scat guy’— not a title he ever sought out.

• The bird sound in this episode is the kākāriki karaka
• The music used is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters
• Te reo Māori intro translation: Kia ora! Ko Erica Wilkinson tēnei. He kōnae ipurangi tēnei, e pā ana ki ngā Sounds of Science. (Hi! My name is Erica Wilkinson and this is a podcast about Sounds of Science).

We work in partnership with Ngāi Tahu to lead the kākāriki karaka recovery programme, which includes extensive predator control in their mainland habitat through the Tiakina Ngā Manu programme, captive breeding and maintaining a pest-free island population.

The Isaac Conservation and Wildlife Trust, Auckland Zoo, Orana Wildlife Park, Christchurch Helicopters and Canterbury University all provide crucial support for this programme.

This is the much awaited second part of Brent Beaven’s Predator Free interview. In this episode, we’re talking about upcoming innovations as well as current predator control tools, and yes that includes 1080. This episode is a big swing and we hope it gives you some important context.

• The bird sound in this episode is the Northern brown kiwi
• The music used is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters
• Brent’s excellent blog series about Predator Free is available on the Conservation Blog

Brent is on the show to tell us everything we need to know about Predator Free 2050 – in fact, he told us so much, we’ve split his interview into two. This is part one. Brent is an expert on predator control and has decades of hands-on field experience. He's herded sea lions, been hounded by kiwi, and caught mohua in his socks. In the world of threatened species conservation, you name it and Brent has done it. Listen and learn.

• The bird sound in this episode is the Northern brown kiwi
• The music used is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters
• Brent’s excellent blog series about Predator Free is available on the Conservation Blog

Anton van Helden is a marine scientist by day moonlighting as a magician by night, although one could make the point that magic never sleeps. Anton has over 30 years of experience working with and studying marine mammals – before he worked for us, he was at Te Papa. Now, Anton works as a science advisor in our Marine Species Team, assigned to looking after Māui and Hector's dolphins. In this episode, you’ll hear talk of strandings, the subants, toxoplasmosis, pub statistics, and climate, as well as working with iwi on recovery of bones.

Abracadabra, are you listening closely?

CONTENT WARNING: Please be advised that the following episode contains specific discussion of dissection (we kept it reasonably high level) which some listeners may find graphic. This is 8.03 – 11.22. And at 23.25 we talk about taonga and why dissections are important for Iwi.

In honour of Conservation Week, we’ve put together a supercut of all our favourite moments from the past ten episodes. Lichens, bats, kākāpō sperm helmets (we couldn’t make this up), GPS, poo patches and more – this episode is packed to the brim with stories from all of our previous guests.

The birdsong used in this episode is the pīwakawaka/fantail.

Jenny Christie is used to seeing eyebrows go up when she tells people what her job is. Perhaps a few years ago, this could be chalked up to scepticism, but nowadays it’s more likely to mean, ‘wow, big job’.

Jenny’s job is climate change. She approaches this from an adaptation point of view, which means working on what we can do to manage and reduce the impacts of climate change on our native species and ecosystems. In this episode, Jenny talks about adaptation work underway, what she says to naysayers, and some of the impacts on native species we’re seeing right now.

The birdsong used this episode is the North Island Robin. The music used is Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters.

Kelly Frogley knows her stuff when it comes to non-vascular plants – and then some. In this episode, Kelly explains what a non-vascular plant is, and shares some stories about unexpected discoveries and making the most of non-optimum spaces for optimum plant identification.

We also talk about green-blindness and the importance of looking down. And up. And around – well, you get it. Non-vascular plants are all around!

The birdsong used this episode is the tui.

Music is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters.

Colin O’Donnell knows everything there is to know about pekapeka/bats. He’s accumulated some wild stories along the way. In the name of science, Colin has encountered popping bats, game-changing technology, tiger prints and gelatinous excretions – which is exactly as gross as it sounds.

Most importantly, we talk about the impact of predators on Aotearoa’s only endemic land mammal. This highlights the reason for us to work towards a Predator Free New Zealand.

The birdsong used this episode is the North Island robin.

Music is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters.

Conservation enthusiast and DOC legend Herb talks to Nic about his experience as a science communicator, navigating the bush before sat nav, being trolled by kea, and species protection on offshore islands. Plus, he treats us to some of his famous bird calls.

If there were such thing as conservation bingo, (sidebar: should we make that?), Herb would be a square all of his own, given how many times his name is mentioned in conservation conversation. “Ask Herb”, “See what Herb thinks” or “Herb might know” are popular refrains around here. Cheers to this stalwart of species survival.

The birdsong (well, bird scream) used this episode is the kea.

Music is Let’s Get Down to Business by Cast of Characters.