New Home for Wētāpunga

On Friday 28th October 220 Wētāpunga (Deinacrida heteracanthawere) were released at Tawharanui. The project was a collaboration between Auckland Council, Ngāti Manuhiri settlement Trust, Butterfly Creek and TOSSI.

They were taken to a secret location of mature bush and introduced to their new home. The bamboo homes act as  temporary accommodation until they find a place of their own. A good range of sizes were introduced from instar 5 to 11. (An instar indicates the number of moults they go through, 11 being the last)

A number of TOSSI members were privileged to participate in the release. Handling these large insects was both challenging and rewarding.

If you want to know more about these guys check out the link below.

https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/invertebrates/weta/giant-weta-wetapunga/