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New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) has announced that 28 Wildlife facilities and attractions impacted by New Zealand’s COVID-19 response will soon receive support from the Wildlife Institutions Relief Fund.

DOC Director General Lou Sanson says that without the support, wildlife under the care of eco-sanctuaries, zoos, wildlife parks and wildlife rehabilitation facilities would be at risk. The impacts of the COVID-19 response have severely reduced wildlife institutions’ revenue from visitors and donations. The continued closure of New Zealand’s borders means revenue is likely to remain low for the 2020/21 financial year.

Sanson notes “Wildlife institutions work hard to protect and restore populations of threatened native species. The critically threatened Chesterfield and cobble skinks would probably be extinct without wildlife institutions’ recovery programmes. Wildlife rescue facilities carry out invaluable work, especially for indigenous species such as kākāpō and hoiho/yellow-eyed penguin.

“These institutions also play a vital community education role, facilitating encounters with native species and wildlife experts, and providing a hub for community conservation activities.

Sanson advises that the Zoo Aquarium Association Australasia (ZAA) and Sanctuaries of New Zealand Incorporated (SONZI) play a key role in keeping DOC informed about their members’ needs and the challenges they currently face.

The fund is worth $14.89 million. $9.6 million is being allocated to 28 successful applicants. The one-off funding will cover urgent and critical operational costs to maintain animal welfare, protect and retain specialist jobs and prevent the collapse of recovery programmes for New Zealand’s most threatened species.

The actual amount that each institution will receive is being agreed to between the institutions and DOC. Once confirmed, amounts will be posted to the WIRF webpage. 

Wildlife Institutions Relief Fund (WIRF) recipients:

• Auckland Zoo
• Brook Waimārama Sanctuary
• Butterfly Creek (Papillon Group Limited)
• Cape Sanctuary (Cape Kidnappers)
• Kiwi Birdlife Park Ltd
• National Aquarium of NZ
• Natureland Wildlife Trust
• New Zealand Bird Rescue
• Ngā Manu Wildlife Reserve
• Orana Wildlife Trust
• Orokonui Ecosanctuary
• Otago Museum
• Otorohanga Kiwi House and Native Bird Park
• Penguin Place
• Penguin Rescue
• Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre
• Rainbow Springs Nature Park
• Rotokare Scenic Reserve Trust
• Te Puia
• The National Kiwi Hatchery
• Ti Point Reptile Park
• Wellington Zoo Trust
• Wildbase Hospital - Massey University Foundation
• Wildlife Foxton Trust
• Wildlife Hospital Trust Dunedin
• Wildlife Veterinary Trust
• Willowbank Wildlife Reserve Ltd
• Zealandia Ecosanctuary.

Image courtesy of Otorohanga Kiwi House and Native Bird Park

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