Mahurangi West · Aotearoa

Bringing the birdsong back to the Mahurangi West Peninsula.

Restoring native bird habitat across 3,500 hectares of Mahurangi West. Over 150 volunteers plant natives, clear the weeds that smother the bush and count the birds that come back.

Who we’re doing this for

  • Kākāforest parrot
  • Kererūwood pigeon
  • Tūīhoneyeater
  • Kōtarekingfisher
  • Kororālittle penguin
  • Matuku-hūrepobittern
  • TītīCook’s petrel
  • Mātātāfernbird
  • Pekapekanative bat

Our impact

Small tasks, done by many hands, add up.

hectares restored and protected
3,500
volunteers
150+
volunteer hours in 2025–26
6,700+

What we do

Three ways we bring the birdsong back.

  1. 01

    20 monitoring stations

    Understand

    Volunteers count birds at 20 stations every season, listen for pekapeka and watch over the coast.

    Learn more
    Bird counters with binoculars on a picnic rug at the edge of the bush
  2. 02

    Planting · weeding · regeneration

    Restore

    We plant natives and clear the weeds that smother the bush, from Jamieson Bay to Huawai Bay.

    Learn more
    A group of volunteers at the end of a planting day
  3. 03

    16,000+ pest catches since 2019

    Protect

    With Auckland Council we look after what has been restored, so it keeps feeding and sheltering birds.

    Learn more
    Native plants growing on the foreshore

Micro-volunteering

Got half an hour?

We work on the principle that many hands make light work. Small, regular contributions keep our projects going without anyone feeling overloaded.

Find your task
  • 30min

    Count birds

    Half an hour at your station, once a season.

  • 1hour

    Join a weed café

    Weeding, mulching and watering natives with your neighbours.

  • Join a planting day

    Help plant natives, from the Jamieson Bay esplanade to Huawai Bay.

A large group of volunteers on a gravel road above Huawai Bay

“Control, monitor, adapt, enhance and repeat to protect Mahurangi West.”

Brian Bramell, Chair
Community members gathered at the iwi pine removal project

Mana whenua

Caring for the whenua, together.

Ngāti Maraeariki ki Mahurangi have ancestral ties to this land, including the pā sites of Maki and Korotangi, and have been part of the project since its early days.

The Morehu and Roberts whānau have worked alongside the community on their land at Jamieson Bay and Opahi Bay.

Our iwi partners

With thanks to

  • Ngāti Maraeariki ki Mahurangi
  • Auckland Council
  • Foundation North
  • Predator Free NZ
  • The Forest Bridge Trust
  • Judith Williams Trust
  • Pic’s Peanut Butter
  • Blue Star Group
  • Mahurangi Estates