The funding from the Arrowtown-based nationwide charity would enable SLS to install 28 state-of-the-art pest traps to target possums, rats and feral cats which inhabited the area and threatened native wildlife, SLS said in a statement.
The traps included 18 self-resetting devices and 10 live-capture traps and would be deployed this spring in the area, which was a popular spot for lakeside nature walks, which boasted beech forest, manuka groves and a lime kiln which dated back to the 1800s.
SLS project director Paul Kavanagh said the sanctuary was "incredibly grateful" the trust recognised the importance of the conservation work it was undertaking at Bob’s Cove.
"It is the closest intact native beech forest to Queenstown and is home to many endemic species, including yellow-crowned parakeet (kākāriki), tūī and falcon (kārearea), but this incredible location and its wildlife is under serious threat because of introduced mammals," he said in a statement.
"Having these additional traps on the ground will help to significantly reduce predator numbers."
SLS had been actively trapping in Bob’s Cove since 2022 and supporting the Whakatipu Wildlife Trust and Bob’s Cove Predator Control Group by adding 20 AT220 traps, which had removed more than 1000 predators.
The new traps would be mounted with nodes, which featured an AI camera and a communications system to alert the SLS team of "predator interactions".
Hugo Charitable Trust chief executive Aoibheann Monaghan said conservation was an important priority for the trust, which supported initiatives to protected the natural environment for future generations.
"When this opportunity came up to support the work they are doing at Bob’s Cove, we felt it fit perfectly with us."
The trust had contributed more than $1.5million to community groups over the past year, more than 10% given to New Zealand environmental groups.
Since it was established in 2017, it had donated more than $18m across the country.
