To save its rare birds, New Zealand is relying on a nation of backyard trappers

"Like many student volunteers, the kids in the group Town Belt Kaitiaki look after their neighborhood parks planting trees, weeding, clearing paths. But they also do something less common: exterminating animals. "So we have a possum trap the white ones that are up on the trees," says Finn Hibbert, age 18, pointing to a white and metal box designed to kill brushtail possums, an Australian marsupial. Other traps scattered throughout the park also kill rats."

"New Zealand is trying to eradicate many of its invasive species animals that were brought to the country by humans and have wreaked havoc on the native wildlife ever since. (New Zealand is also known by its Maori name, Aotearoa). New Zealand has rare birds that are found nowhere else, like the fuzzy and flightless kiwi. Invasive predators have helped drive 62 native bird species to extinction, and more than 80% of the remaining ones that breed in the country are at risk."

Local volunteer groups maintain parks and also set traps to kill invasive mammals such as brushtail possums and rats. New Zealand aims to eradicate invasive species by 2050 to protect endemic birds such as the flightless kiwi. Invasive predators have caused the extinction of 62 native bird species and placed more than 80% of remaining breeding species at risk. The eradication goal will likely require removing tens of millions of animals from private and public land and vigilance to prevent reinvasion. The government leads eradication efforts while conservation experts emphasize that extensive community participation and social engagement are essential to achieve the target.

Read at www.npr.org