September 27, 2022
Manuhiri welcomes wētāpunga back to mainland
The wētāpunga are back.
Over 200 of the giant weta have been released at Shakespear Regional Park on the Whangaoaraoa peninsula, their first release to a mainland site.
They were reared at the privately-owned Butterfly Creek zoo and conservation centre, and the release was coordinated with Auckland Council and Ngāti Manuhiri Settlement Trust, mana whenua for the Hauturu-ō-Toi-Little Barrier, which until 2009 was the sole remaining habitat for Aotearoa’s largest insect.
Since then they have also been reintroduced to Tiritiri Matangi and Motuora islands, and next month there will be a release to Tāwharanui Regional Park east of Matakana.
The wētāpunga were released into bamboo tubes hung on trees, where they could shelter until nightfall when they explore their new homes and began foraging.