Seabird monitoring efforts for species we rarely see continued this year on the land of the birds, Enuamanu, Atiu. The main focus of these efforts are the petrels and shearwaters, with the local Atiu name for shearwaters being Titi Rakorakoa. Many of these species are often difficult to study because they spend most of the day far out at sea, only returning to their nesting colonies on land after dark. Their presence is usually detected not by sight, but by the distinctive calls they make shortly after nightfall and again during the early hours of the morning.
To carry out this survey, a collective multi-agency field team was formed, including representatives from Te Ipukarea Society, Archipelago Research and Conservation, the National Environment Service and the Atiu Island Government. This collaborative approach brought together local knowledge, conservation leadership and technical expertise to support the long-term goal of better understanding Atiu’s seabird populations.
