This baby kākāriki is already on the “near threatened” list of New Zealand native species. Photo Peter Young

To Korowai o Waiheke has teamed up with Waiheke Cinema to bring acclaimed doco Fight for the Wild to the big screen next month. Fight for the Wild explores the notions of Predator Free 2050 (from which Te Korowai o Waiheke was born), walking with the kaitiaki, ecologists, inventors and community trappers who dedicate their time defending our country’s taonga species. 

The four-part documentary screens in the little cinema over the first two Sundays in August and for admission, a jar of smooth peanut butter will be accepted in place of a ticket. The peanut butter will be used in traps and tracking tools as part of the upcoming rat eradication pilot, contributing to Waiheke’s own fight for the wild.

The documentary series, previously shown on TVNZ, takes viewers deep into the heart of Aotearoa to follow the ongoing battle between native species and the onslaught of introduced predators. Every year the eggs and chicks of some 26 million native New Zealand birds are devoured by predators, which also do damage to countless populations of insects, amphibians, reptiles and plants. There are currently more than 4000 threatened native species and many more vulnerable to predation.

Full story in this week’s Gulf News… Out Now!!!

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