On the 8th of August, Te Mahia school students built 12 nesting boxes for the smallest Penguin in the world. The Little Blue Penguin used to breed in the Whangawehi estuary until the 60s. Te Mahia students intend to do their best to try bring back the noisy but emblematic bird. In September, the nesting boxes will be installed along the Whangawehi stream amongst a growing forest of flaxes and native trees. A netting will protect the sites from dogs and traps will be laid in order to keep predators at bay.

A big thank you to the community for their commitment and patience during the building phase, a few adults’ thumbs came quite close to the hammers handled by the younger ones!