February 2025

City Sanctuary is gearing up for the next chapter of work, beginning regular five-minute bird counts. It’s a simple but effective tool that can be used to gauge the health of ecosystems where predator control has taken place.  The count requires an observer to record the number and species of birds seen or heard at […]

18 Dec Written By City Sanctuary 2024 has been a milestone year for City Sanctuary with the 5,000th possum and 5,000th rat officially removed from Dunedin. We presently have 3,463 possum, rat and mustelid traps across City Sanctuary’s operating area; 1,698 in residential backyards and 1,765 in city reserves. City Sanctuary traps across Dunedin City […]

We know from our recent survey that City Sanctuary residents love animals and want the best for our native species and our pet cats. 27% of the survey respondents own cats and we all want to keep pet cats safe while we are carrying out predator control. We can proudly say that after several years […]

 When you provide personal information to us, we will comply with the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020. The personal information you provide to us (including any information provided if you sign up as a volunteer or trap host) is collected and may be used to communicate with you, for statistical analysis and reporting, research and […]

We’re very excited to share that at least two nest boxes for rifleman/titipounamu in Ross Creek have been used this season.   During our official monitor in October, staff found two boxes had nests and were being continually visited by adults with beaks full of insects. From inside the boxes there was a lot of hungry […]

Our long time Community Ranger and communications expert, Zac Martin, will soon take flight on a new adventure working with the Dunedin City Baptist Church and studying part-time at Otago University. Project Manager, Catherine reflects on Zac’s contribution across the breadth of the City Sanctuary project over the past four years.    ”It seems like […]

31 Jan Written By City Sanctuary Word cloud of responses about what makes Dunedin special.  In October, City Sanctuary released a survey to get a pulse on how Dunedin residents feel about predator control activities in the city, the impact of predators in the local environment and how we can sustainably support predator control.  The survey […]

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There are hundreds of possum and rat traps set in Dunedin’s urban parks and reserves. We’re looking for volunteers to help regularly check these traps and keep them freshly baited. Here’s what’s involved: Trap lines take between 2 -4 hours to complete You will walk your marked line and at each trap dispose of carcasses, […]

We are helping Dunedin residents get involved in backyard trapping to reduce numbers of possums, rats and stoats across the city. If you live near a reserve or forest, have a section with bush, or are being visited by possums, we’d like to get a trap on your property. We provide traps on loan, baits, […]

Possums are the main predator species we’re targeting. Rats and mustelids (stoats ferrets and weasels) are also highly destructive to native birds and plants so we’re aiming to reduce their numbers. Other species such as mice and hedgehogs are also trapped. For millions of years, our native wildlife evolved without the threat of ground-based mammal […]

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Kate Tanner Project Coordinator Kate is our Project Coordinator and has years of conservation experience in Dunedin. She has previously worked for the Halo Project, Otago Peninsula Biodiversity Group, the Department of Conservation and the Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust. There isn’t a lot Kate doesn’t do: you’ll see her out installing traps, working with volunteers, engaging […]

We have hundreds of possum, rat and mustelid traps covering some of Dunedin’s most important urban parks and reserves. City Sanctuary trap lines span from Chingford Park to Ross Creek Reserve and Signal Hill, down through the Botanic and Woodhaugh Gardens, spreading along the Town Belt to Jubilee Park and bushy areas in Caversham. These […]