Ahuahu: An island conservation journey in Aotearoa New Zealand

(Paperback)

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Aotearoa New Zealand is renowned among biologists worldwide for spectacular ecological restoration work over the last 50 years, through advances in pest eradication and native species translocation. This book documents the development of these world-leading technologies. It uses examples from throughout the country, but has a special focus on one island group - the Mercury Islands off Coromandel, of which Ahuahu (Great Mercury Island) is the largest. The story is told through the eyes of pioneer conservation biologist David Towns, who was there from the start. It is a story of triumphs and setbacks, of opportunity and innovation, of teamwork and emerging bicultural collaboration. Today, all seven islands of the Mercury group are free of mammalian pests, providing a haven to native plants and animals. This book is the story of how that was made possible.

Author Bio

David Towns did his MSc and PhD at the University of Auckland. After six years overseas at universities in the USA and Australia, he returned to New Zealand in 1982 to work with the New Zealand Wildlife Service as a conservation scientist. In 1987 the Wildlife Service became part of the newly formed Department of Conservation (DOC). He stayed with DOC until 2012, when he began a shared appointment between DOC and Auckland University of Technology (AUT), teaching conservation there as a Professor of Applied Conservation. David won the Charles Fleming Award for Environmental Achievement from the Royal Society Te Aparangi for his pioneering research in conservation and island ecosystem ecology in 2019. David retired from AUT as Professor Emeritus in 2020, which gave him time to distil the key messages from a lifetime's conservation experience into this book. He lives in Auckland.