At a ceremony on Tuesday night, Forest & Bird gave the money to the cause.
The Department of Conservation announced last month just an estimated 101 birds remained on Stewart Island after Doc completed its annual flock count on the endangered bird. It was a 19% decline from last year’s count of 126.
Southern dotterels, which only breed on Stewart Island, have spent the past few decades on the brink of extinction and sadly this year looks to be a similar story.
NZ Nature Fund chief executive Sarah Lyttle said the donation by the Southland Forest & Bird branch brought the total funds raised for the project since November 2023 to $100,000.
These funds can now be used by Doc’s southern dotterel team in preparation for the 2024 nesting season.
The New Zealand Nature Fund is aiming to raise up to $400,000 over the next four years in order to help Doc save the southern NZ Dotterel.
Ms Lyttle said it was particularly poignant Southland Forest and Bird has made this donation because it was longtime local member Jenny Campbell who brought the dotterels’ plight to the attention of the NZ Nature Fund.
"Jenny knew that we had the ability to raise funds and support Doc with species facing extinction, so she contacted us," Ms Lyttle said.
Stewart Island resident and another longtime Southland Forest & Bird member, Margaret Hopkins, said the donated funds came from the proceeds of a sale of a property some time ago and it was very appropriate they could be used to save such a precious local taonga.
Donations to the NZ Nature Fund campaign are provided directly to Doc to increase its resources and activity in the alpine areas of Stewart Island to respond to feral cat predators.
"I’m urging Kiwis to dig deep again and donate to our southern NZ dotterel campaign. Every dollar counts," Ms Lyttle said.
