Native birds don’t give a flying fig whether their habitat consists of native or indigenous trees.
Other mature exotic trees in our neighbourhood under threat:
• All the roadside trees along Meola Road from the Meola Dogwalking Park to Pt Chevalier Road are in danger from the proposed cycleway that also proposes no street parking.
• All the magnolia trees on Karangahape Road are being chopped down for the cycleway, while the nikau are being moved.
• Chamberlain Park still has 1000 trees at risk if the proposed $30M soccer field goes ahead.
• Exotic trees on all our maunga are to be removed. Mt Wellington has had most removed and those on the quarry face will be next. Mangere lost 152 exotic trees. Pigeon Mountain lost more than 110.
The Tupuna Maunga Authority has resource consent to remove 345 protected exotics from Owairaka Mt Albert, and Grey Lynn residents have joined the protest to stop all removal by noisy chainsaws and helicopters in native bird breeding season as per the Wildlife Act 1953 that protects native birds, nests and eggs from killing, injury and disturbance.
We are asking for the TMA to follow their own Integrated Management Plan with ‘succession planting’ where the mature exotics form a nursery for the seedlings; to save exotic species like the cherry grove and the banksia that provide tui with nectar; to save the olive grove that was grown from pips from Palestine that no longer exist. (GAEL BALDOCK)