Thorndon Park Bird Refuge Island
The Thorndon Park refuge island was constructed in April 2020 to be a sanctuary for waterfowl from predators and anthropogenic influences. Since the island’s introduction, species sighted has included Australian Pelican, Eurasian Coot, Dusky Moorhen, Purple Swamphen, Little Pied Cormorant, Great Cormorant and Egret. To have it used by such diversity so soon after its conception is a promising outlook for the ongoing success of the island. Monitoring of the island’s utilisation and surveys of waterbirds birds within the park will continue while the island becomes properly established.
When the island was launched, it had a variety of Carex grass and rushes. Over time the plants were no longer visible on the island, and upon further investigation it seemed overuse and foraging from waterfowl resulted in many of the plants being eaten or pulled up by the root.
To re-enhance the island, individual floating planting pots with mature plants and dead branches were added. Within a day after these additions an Egret was sighted on the island. Future enhancements to the structure will include more plants with mesh to protect them for the eager birdlife.
While the importance of sanctuaries and refuge islands are well known for coastal and migratory species, they also play an important role in inland waterbodies. The Thorndon Park Bird Refuge Island Project is proving to be a positive and successful trial of a small scale man-made floating island on an inland waterbody.
