NatureFijiNatureFiji--MareqetiVitiMareqetiViti Newsletter 12 March 2012 2012 NFMV Work Plan and Live Projects The NFMV team kicked off 2012 with our annual planning meet at the Raintree Lodge, Colo-i-Suva, from the 4-5th of January. The Strategic planning meet, is an important annual exercise, as each year the team reviews the projects of the year before planning for the year ahead. At the meeting project managers develop sound, resourced, and feasible plans for the live projects, and exit/continuity plans for projects that are ending at some point over the year. The team looks at each staff members individual work plans identifying issues of overloading or under-resourcing, and then revises work plans to suit. In addition, the 2012 Annual Plan also sets out activities for our operations as an organisation, . such as financial processes, staffing policies, and office Tuverea Tuamoto (in the foreground) procedures.

New International Volunteer, Joanne Malotaux, joins NFMV to assist with our bat surveys. Joanne, who is from the Netherlands, is a Masters student who intends to devote part of her research to the bats found on , and . She will be working closely with Kelera Macedru, who has previously surveyed caves on Taveuni Island for cave dwelling bat colonies. Joanne will be investigating the biological and ecological aspects of the bat colonies .These bat surveys are partially funded by the Australian Tropical Research Foundation (AUSTROP), through our collaboration with The NFMV staff: Back row (L-R) Kolinio, Waisale, Dick, Eleazer Dr. Hugh Spencer, one of the directors of AUSTROP. Front row (L-R) Reena, Kelera, Nunia, Anna and Tamara Welcome to Fiji, Joanne!

NFMV welcomes into their fold their newest member, Tuverea Tuamoto, as the European Union (EU) Invasives Project Officer. The project is a large-scale collaboration with Birdlife International and the Fiji Invasives Species Task (FIST) force. Mr. Tuamoto comes to us after working for the Birdlife Fiji Programme, where his major achievements were the completion of a literature review to identify priority areas for seabird conservation in Fiji (subsequently followed by seabird field surveys), and the drafting of Fiji’s first IBA Monitoring Framework guideline. Tuverea's appointment as our EU Invasives project officer is well-contrived and bodes well for the community-based Joanne Malotaux components of the project. MareqetiViti is best translated as ‘Caring for Fiji’

NatureFiji-MareqetiViti’s mission is to enhance biodiversity and habitat conservation, endangered species protection and sustainable use of natural resources of the Fiji Islands through the promotion of collaborative conservation action, awareness raising, education, research and biodiversity information exchange. Feature Article

NatureFiji-MareqetiViti’s 2012 live projects The Thrigby Hall funded replanting scheme for the Navua listings: Palm are the quarterly visits to the Garrick Reserve, where the insurance population of the endangered Navua Palm is

maintained. 1. Sago Palm Restoration (FAO) 2. Crested iguana translocation (Taronga Zoo) Surveys for Fiji Petrel and Collared Petrel burrows will be 3. Navua Palm - Garrick Reserve (Thrigby Hall) comprehensive this year with the help of Bob and Tar, our 4. Arcadia NGO development (BL-I/ Arcadia) two trained wildlife detector dogs. Artificial box nests 5. Fiji Petrel searches (CEPF) have already been put to use, under the Fiji Petrel 6. Kulawai searches and community training (CEPF) project, apparently also with the Petrels, as we recently 7. Vodafone WOD volunteership (Vodafone ATH) recorded a Collared petrel egg on one of the boxes. A 8. Taveuni National Park (CEPF) great surprise! 9. EU Invasives (EU) 10. Yaqaga Iguanas (IIF) One project that will be drawing to an end this year with 11. Rivers Fiji RAMSAR (Rivers Fiji) the last activity planned being the Namenalala Crested Iguana translocation, a collaborative project with the NFMV got straight to work immediately after, beginning National Trust of Fiji. with setting up the NFMV office in Somosomo, Taveuni, from which the Taveuni National Park project will be run. The hunt for the Kulawai continues in 2012 with several The Taveuni National Park community awareness campaign will involve working the Department of Forestry surveys with our community field guides slotted in during to inform landowners of the Ravilevu Nature Reserve, the first three months of 2012. Taveuni Forest Reserve, Bouma National Heritage Park, and the 1995 Taveuni Integrated Development Plan. Anna Sahai's one-year sponsorship by the Vodafone ATH World of Difference (WOD) programme will continue to bring us Anna's valuable contributions to the many projects we implement, particularly with the development and set up of our library and electronic archive.

Our collaboration with Rivers Fiji (NFMV Corporate GOLD member) to implement education and awareness activities under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, has reached a formal status with Kelera Macedru working on these activities 40% of her time. Baby Culanuku restoration site, a model for our FAO funded Sago Project. The Yaqaga Iguana project, funded by the International Iguana Foundation (IIF), will be more comprehensive this Our Sago Palm project funded by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) through the Secretariat for the Pacific year as we intensify our efforts to remove cats from the Community (SPC), is a community-based restoration island and widen the search for these unique iguanas. So programme based at two sites: Wainawa in south-east all in all, a very busy year ahead for NFMV! Viti Levu (near Montfort Boys Town) and Savarekareka, north-east of Savusavu in Vanua Levu.

NatureFiji-MareqetiViti Newsletter 12 www.naturefiji.org March 2012 Page 2 Project Updates

Successful first year breeding of Monuriki Crested necessary for a good record of the bird. With the help of Iguanas The Monuriki Crested Iguana is a distinctive form this data, we know that the bird is almost certainly a of the better known Crested Iguana from Yadua Taba, Bua recently fledged young. but is known only from Monu and Monuriki islands in the The big question is " Did it fledge from a nest on Gau or Mamanuca Group where the population is less than 40. had it fledged from a nest on Taveuni where we know The island itself was very badly degraded with no there is a large colony of Tahiti Petrels ?" The Fiji Petrel regeneration of the forest because of an excessive number of goats running wild. The National Trust for Fiji together with the Kula Eco Park persuaded the landowners to allow a captive breeding programme to be undertaken, the first of its kind in Fiji. In return for removing all the goats and allowing a captive population of 20 individuals to be to be taken to Kula EcoPark. The offspring would be released on Monuriki once the goats are removed. All the goats have now been removed by the Birdlife International, National Trust (NTF), landowners’ team. Iguanas were brought into captivity in mid 2010; after improving their condition, they were paired up and last A young Tahiti Petrel being measured, weighed, year 11 eggs were laid. Kula Eco-Park obtained 100% banded and then released hatching success after a lengthy six month incubation period. This is a wonderful result for Fiji’s first endangered Project found a cat-killed Tahiti Petrel carcass ashore on species captive breeding program. Well done all round! Gau in the mid 1980s but none have been seen since despite many thousands of hours of spotlighting and searching...So it remains a bit of a mystery. Meantime, NatureFiji-MareqetiViti is happy to announce the availability of two very important project reports from the Fiji Petrel Project. The first " Age of 3 Fiji Petrels" is an analysis of the age of the January 2009 specimen, October 2011 and November 2011 landing and released birds. The conclusion is that the 29 October 2011 bird was a fledgling, the 30 November 2011 bird was a sub-adult and the January 2009 bird remains uncertain but may well have been a fledgling. This is a seminal paper for the Fiji Petrel Project because the authors (three of the world's top petrel specialists - Dr. Paul Scofield, Dr. Graeme Taylor and Dr. Alan Baby Monuriki Iguana a few days after hatching Tennyson) have provided an important guide for ageing petrels in the field. We are very grateful for their A Tahiti Petrel landed in Nawaikama, the 2nd ever assistance. The significance of this work is that it enables record from Gau. In mid-December, a young, probably the Fiji Petrel Project to focus its search work in those recently fledged, Tahiti Petrel landed in Nawaikama village months when we know the species is breeding. The other on Gau's west coast. Poasa Qalo and Amania Taukei from important report is by Mark Fraser on his training Gau, undertook all the measurements and photographs assignment with NFMV. Both reports are available from NFMV on request. NatureFiji-MareqetiViti Newsletter 12 www.naturefiji.org March 2012 Page 3 Project Updates

Updates from the American iguana project After a full year of awareness campaigns and scientific The final selection for the restoration work will be based research, we now have an American iguana (Iguana on the communities’ responsiveness to the preliminary iguana) activity calendar that allows us to better plan and awareness and training workshops. implement the eradication strategy. The site at Savarekareka is along the main road and must Our findings support international research results that have once had a thriving population of Fiji sago palms. It American iguanas are most visible and vulnerable during has become badly degraded and is almost over-run with their mating and nesting (egg-laying) season. For Fiji, invasive grasses and other weedy species. based on the sightings of gravid (pregnant) females, juveniles and the times at which they have been sighted, The site at Wainawa is close to the village and will be we know that their mating season is from April to August. easily monitorable by the villagers. The community itself This overlaps with their nesting season, which begins in has initiated contact with NFMV, seeking guidance and May (depending on when successful mating has occurred), financial support for its own development ideas. The lasting through to October by which time encounters of mataqali, Sovi, from Wainawa Village owns a large area of gravid females are rare. degraded forest and grassland, parts of which overlap with In 2011 alone, more than 14 gravid females were captured Birdlife International's Important Bird Area (IBA) FJ09. The between May and October; and more than 888 eggs land for the restoration site belongs to the mataqali and destroyed from these captures. Hatchlings and empty egg they are very keen on beginning the restoration project, shells were positively identified and measured for the first time in January 2012. We have now confirmed breeding and nesting sites on and Matagi Island; as well as potential nesting sites on Taveuni. We have to date not received any confirmed nesting on Taveuni, but the monitoring of these potential sites is mandatory. We are grateful to the numerous volunteers through whom we collated the above data: during the awareness campaigns and Temporary Biosecurity Officer Training conducted through out the Cakaudrove Province and Tikina Natewa/ Tunuloa on Taveuni, Qamea, Matagi, and Vanua Levu from June 2010 to September 2012. The American iguana eradication project is funded by the Critical Ecosystems Partnership Fund and the Ministry of Remnants of the natural population of Fiji sago palms Primary Industries and Biosecurity Authority of Fiji. present at Savarekareka, along the main road.

Potential Sago Restoration Sites Identified which will involve setting up a sago seedling nursery and As part of MV03F- Sago Palm restoration project funded transplanting saplings onto the designated area. by FAO through SPC, two potential sites have been The project will be developed according to the experiences identified for restoration of the degraded natural Sago and lessons learnt in the pilot project at Culanuku Village, palm stands present at the sites, Wainawa (south-east Viti Serua Province. Levu) and Savarekareka (south-east Vanua Levu).

NatureFiji-MareqetiViti Newsletter 12 www.naturefiji.org March 2012 Page 4 NFMV Membership Updates

NatureFiji-MareqetiViti Library As of March this to their company website on the NFMV website. year, our library will be available for access by our Established in Fiji in the year 1996, McDonalds Fiji is members. We have a total of 147 accessions, which arguably the world’s most widespread fast-food provider. includes conservation reports by the government and other non-government organisations (NGOs) such as Upcoming Club Events ourselves, books, DVDs, maps, research papers and informational material such as pamphlets and posters. We Colo-I-Suva reception office club event: NFMV club often use the library ourselves when preparing proposals members are invited for an ‘office makeover’ at the Colo-I- and reports and are constantly updating the library with Suva reception office. The event is scheduled for two new material, such as current scientific articles that Saturdays, that is the 24th and 31st of March 2012. document new species and new results of the authors’ research. Our members are welcome to call in Parents with their children are invited to attend the (Ph: 3100598) to arrange a time to come and have a look mentioned club events. Because of the limited space, at the contents of our library. Ana Sahai is our NFMV will only be able to cater for 8 people per Saturday. dedicated librarian who is continually inputting literature Please contact Kelera Macedru (Email: accessions on the computer database. Members can [email protected]) to book your place, with the use the database to find an article or book using a preferred date of attendance. Further details will be keyword or the author’s name (s). circulated via email to interested members. Corporate Members in 2012 Two nights at Abaca for club members NFMV invites General Manager for Rentokil members who are interested in staying at a forest lodge Pest Control Fiji, Mark Matthews for three nights, with friends and family, experiencing the subscribed the company, as a tranquility of nature as well as just spending time with ‘Corporate’ member for NatureFiji -MareqetiViti (NFMV) after staff of your loved ones. The camp is scheduled for 9th-11th of the company took part in a Garrick Reserve members’ trip. June 2012, members interested in participating in the Corporate members subscribe for a year under the Abaca event are requested to contact Kelera Macedru via organization, with an agreed usage of the NFMV logo and email. Further details will be circulated through email to a link of their website on the NFMV website. interested members. Rentokil Pest Control is the world’s largest commercial pest control service provider. In Fiji, Rentokil Pest Control Strategic Plan Review NFMV members who are invited is a leading industry-member, providing pest control to be part of the review process for our Five Year Strategic services to all sectors on the two largest islands, Viti Levu Plan, to contact us (contact information below) and send and Vanua Levu. in your details to Nunia Thomas by the end of March. We

will be forming a small committee to review the document Managing Director for McDonalds and report its findings to the NFMV council before the Fiji, Mark McElrath, recently sub- scribed the company as a 2012 AGM. ‘Corporate GOLD’ member of Published by NatureFiji-MareqetiViti NatureFiji-MareqetiViti. Gold For Newsletter content, contact us at corporate members subscribe [email protected] for a year under the © NatureFiji-MareqetiViti organization, with an unlimited Tel: 3100 598 Fax: 3100 582 usage of the NFMV logo and a link NatureFiji-MareqetiViti Newsletter 12 www.naturefiji.org March 2012 Page 5