Yealands Estate Helps Bring Near-Extinct Falcons Back To Marlborough

New Zealand’s leading sustainable winery, Yealands Estate, has welcomed a pair of endangered native Falcons into its vineyard as part of a breeding programme that aims to bring the rare bird back from the brink of extinction.

Owner and founder Peter Yealands was approached by Colin Wynn, General Manager of the Marlborough Falcon Conservation Trust, who had read about the winery and Peter’s commitment to sustainability.
“It’s terrific to think they’d do it at our place,” said Peter. “Falcons once inhabited the valleys of Marlborough, so it’s exciting to be one of the wineries chosen to bring them back into the area.”

For Colin Wynn, Yealands Estate was a perfect location for the Falcon breeding programme.
“The 1,000 hectare estate provides a very open space and has few power lines, essential for Falcons who are susceptible to electrocution. It also has more than 20 wetland areas to preserve native species and attract native birds like the Falcon,” says Colin.

The breeding programme run by the Marlborough Falcon Conservation Trust is designed to mutually benefit both the Falcon and Marlborough vineyards.

Falcons hunt non-native pest birds and vineyards owners involved in the programme have experienced a notable decrease in the amount of pest birds and related crop damage.

“Lincoln University, estimates that Marlborough grape growers lose $2 million each year due to pest birds eating grapes. If there are Falcons around, pest birds are less likely to feed with gusto and usually they vacate the area,” says Colin.

“If we can encourage more wineries like Yealands Estate to breed Falcons and look after their welfare, it will be a win-win situation for everybody,” he says.

In January a young male and two females were successfully released and Peter describes the male bird as an ‘outstanding bird’ who is almost feeding from the hand. Colin agrees the birds have settled well and says it was the best Falcon release he’s ever done.

“Normally we have to babysit newly released Falcons for quite a while as they often stay on the ground for a period of time, but this release went very smoothly and they took to the air straight away” says Colin.
The Falcons seem to be happy settling into their new homes, practising flying to develop their wing muscles and Colin hopes to have four Falcons ready to breed at Yealands Estate in the spring time.

ABOUT FALCONS

• New Zealand's only Falcon, Kărearea, is one of the rarest falcons in the world
• With less than 4000 pairs nationwide (measured in the 1970’s), they are amongst the most highly endangered native birds, rarer than the Kiwi
• They mainly feed on insects, rodents and small non-native birds such as starlings, blackbirds and thrushes
• A remarkable hunter, they are capable of taking prey six times their own bodyweight
• They catch their prey by striking with their feet containing sharp talons, or a flying attack with their beak
• New Zealand’s fastest bird, they can reach speeds of up to 200km per hour
• The nesting area is usually a scrape on the ground into which the eggs are laid. This type of nest means they’re vulnerable to attacks from animals such as stoats, rats, possums, cats and hedgehogs
• A typical clutch of 2-4 eggs takes 33 days to hatch. Then 31-45 days later they learn to fly
• The Falcon is pictured on the New Zealand $20 note.

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About Yealands Estate:
Yealands Estate is New Zealand’s leading environmentally sustainable winery based in the Awatere Valley, Marlborough. Developed by entrepreneur Peter Yealands, the privately owned winery features advanced green technology in every aspect of design and function.

It received carboNZero certification from Landcare Research in April 2009 and in doing so was the largest winery in New Zealand to achieve this status for its organisation and wine products.

A month later, it was awarded the category trophy for small to medium businesses at the ’EECA’ awards - the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Awards, held by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA).

Yealands wines launched to great acclaim in August 2008, and have collected more than 100 awards to date, which goes to show that being green also means making a great drop. www.yealands.co.nz