Newsletter #92
Tēnā koutou,
Our Annual General Meeting will be held Friday 27 September at the Department of Conservation meeting room, 31 Nga Mahi Road, Sockburn, Christchurch at 2.00 pm (not the usual 1.00 pm as the room is busy until 2.00pm). You do no need to be a member to attend, however, only members are entitled to hold office and vote, and only members have been sent an invitation to join online.
If you are a member and have not received an email with additional details regarding the draft Constitution, please email me after you have checked your junk mail folder. If you like to become a member, please click here.
The AGM will be followed by our General Meeting at 2.30pm.
- Minutes from the last 2023 AGM
- Agenda for upcoming 2024 AGM
- Minutes for the last 2023 GM
- Agenda for the upcoming 2024 GM
If you are attending, please take a moment to read the Minutes and have a look through the Agendas, as this will streamline the meetings, especially as we are starting the AGM and GM one hour later than usual (2pm instead of 1pm).
I look forward to seeing you all there.
Bird Surveys
- Testing the use of drones at the Whitewash Reserve nesting shag colony. This may be of interest if you are considering the use of drones to do bird counts; contact details are in the link above.
- Please remember to send me your bird surveys. These are added to each of the river pages on the website. This helps researchers and community groups to discern trends when they’re looking back over past years.
News
- New Zealand rushes vaccination of endangered birds before deadly strain of H5N1 bird flu arrives – The Guardian
- WWF Grant applications is open until 15 September.
- Hawke’s Bay dotterel population sees record decline, Cyclone Gabrielle blamed – Radio NZ (note: this is covered in more depth by Warwick Allen at the last BRaided Rivers Seminar)
- The Selwyn Waihora Zone Committee will be making recommendations to Environment Canterbury during 2024-25 on how to allocate $50,000 of funding to help implement the Committee’s Action Plan. Environment Canterbury makes the decisions and administers the funding. Have a project that will help improve water management, enhance biodiversity, or engage the community about water management and would like to apply for some funding? If so, please review the Guidance document, and if eligible, send a completed application form to Jaimee Grant, Zone Facilitator (Jaimee.grant@ecan.govt.nz). Applications close 13 September 2024.
- World Rivers Day: celebrate at the Band Rotunda, Cambridge Terrace, Ōtautahi Christchurch, 22 September from 10-2pm. The celebration continues at the Botanical Gardens Kiosk Ōtautahi Christchurch 10:00am-2:00pm until 24 September
Research
- McArthur et al; Using egg floatation to estimate the age and hatching dates of South Island pied oystercatcher (Haematopus finschi) eggs, Notornis 71 pp37-45, 2024
- Radio NZ: Six-part documentary series ‘Turning the Tide’
- Tohoro.org.nz: over 100 research summaries: ‘A decade of transdisciplinary research into supporting healthy marine ecosystems that provide value for all New Zealanders, Sustainable Seas draws to a close. Over the course of the Challenge, our 107 research projects produced hundreds of tools and resources related to managing our unique marine environment…’
- Tohoro.org.nz: over 100 research summaries: ‘A decade of transdisciplinary research into supporting healthy marine ecosystems that provide value for all New Zealanders, Sustainable Seas draws to a close. Over the course of the Challenge, our 107 research projects produced hundreds of tools and resources related to managing our unique marine environment…’
Donations
BRaid is an Incorporated Society (No: 2453663) with Charitable Status (Registration Number CC50089). Membership is free but donations are much appreciated. Donations can be made to BRaid Inc. Account number: 01 0877 0818466 00. Please include your name in the reference line and ideally email us, so that we can thank you and send you a receipt. Donations are tax deductable citing our NZ Business Number 9429043210572.
