Tēnā koutou Kororāreka 👋
The Russell Landcare Trust team is back with an update for June and the first half of 2026!
🐭 RAT UPDATE
We did see a light but not unexpected increase in rats caught throughout our elimination zones (Old Russell/ Te Wahapu, Tapeka and Orongo Bay). However, the good news is that there was an overall decrease in pests caught across the project area compared to the previous month and quarter in 2026, as well as a significant decrease compared to the same month in 2025.
Check out some of our highlights for 2026 so far 👇
🪤 Traps checked by the RLT trapping team- 20,303
🐭 Predators caught – 1,076
⏰ Hours donated by our wonderful volunteers – 2,100
Trees sown in the Native Nursery – 355
🪴 Trees planted (with BOI walkways) – 700
🦝 POSSUM UPDATE
And yet another month with no possums caught in the elimination and knockdown zones, and only 2 caught in the outer buffer zone, Paroa Bay. That’s no possums caught across all our elimination and knockdown zones for 6 months! Another big win for the books and the ngahere.
We’d like to extend a huge thank you to our trapping team, our admin team, the trustees, funders, volunteers and our community – you guys! We’re looking forward to seeing how the rest of 2026 goes.
If you see any rats, hedgehogs, stoats or possums, please contact us by emailing spotted@russelllandcare.org.nz. Also, if you spot any remarkable wildlife, do let us know!