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Town Belt Kaitiaki
Town Belt Kaitiaki (TBK) is a student-led education programme for Dunedin schools and ECE centres.
NEW GEAR!![]()
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We are so grateful to Balmacewen Lions for their donation to us this year - that we've used to buy three good quality sweepnets, four more spades and some gloves. So much fun to have new stuff!![]()
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This year we have a new Discovery Planning Group within TBK that is focusing on monitoring - invertebrates, birds, plants, fungi, invasive mammals.... all the critters and plants living in our Dunedin Town Belt. The sweepnets have already been invaluable to help the students gather information about flying insects in grass.![]()
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The spades and gloves have been christened too now that planting season has started. ![]()
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Thank you Balmacewen Lions! And all our other supporters - such as DCC, DOC, Dunedin Amenities Society and City Sanctuary - who help us in other essential ways!
The NanoFest 2026 programme is now live! ![]()
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The Student Leaders from TBK will be participating again with an interactive stall - on Wednesday 15th July - at the Festival Hub in the Wall Street Mall. This year the students will be teaching you all about the invertebrates of the Town Belt and what they found in grass of different lengths. Our stall is always fun, with different activities completely created by the students. Come see us!![]()
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Bugs in the Grass | NZ Science Festival
scifest.org.nz
Hub: Learn how we can help the bugs, bees and butterflies that live in lawns and grassy parts of the Town Belt.
George Street Normal School is the first of our TBK schools to start planting at their TBK / GSNS Restoration Site in the lower part of Prospect Park. 50 trees and shrubs in the ground to add to the existing native forest there. ![]()
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The 20 plus students planted very well with a bit of help from adults, they got excited by the worms that are plentiful at this site and even had time to start some weeding of trees planted last year. Our new TBK Link Teacher Jess is keen to get back to the site to finish this job - hopefully in Term 3.
BY LAUREL SUMMERFIELD, Year 11, TBK's Student Leadership Team![]()
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It’s time again for another monthly TBK meeting! This month we went away from our usual role-model site and took a trip to the Sligo Terrace Playground. Despite being right next to a playground our members set about working. Together we dug holes for, and planted 64 trees and shrubs! These trees were all natives such as kanuka, totara, rimu and kotukutuku. We also dug holes for Otago Childcare Centre so that they too can have a go at some native tree planting. After all that hard work (and maybe just a little play at the playground) we headed on down to the Dunedin Community house for the planning part of our meeting. There we planned for some really exciting stuff so make sure to keep an eye and ear out for us!
TRAPPING SKILLS 101 TO BRING BACK THE BIRDS!![]()
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Some of our Student Leaders who were new to trapping got trained up last week to catch possums and rats - on NAWAC approved humane traps such as Victors and Flippin Timmys. We have a small trapline in their Role Model Site where students are learning the skills, and a longer trapline across Robin Hood where experienced students are trapping. ![]()
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For us, killing a creature is not done lightly. This is why humane trapping is very important, as well as having an elimination goal that we have with Predator Free Dunedin. The aim is to get to zero or at least very low numbers so no or fewer animals are caught in the longer run. ![]()
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By doing this we can help our bush and birds to flourish again! For 80 million years, New Zealand did not have any terrestrial mammals, apart from our bats. Our endemic flora and birds such as kaka, titipounamu/rifleman and south island robin / kakaruai have evolved without the impacts of mammals. By removing them where it's achievable we can help these native flora and fauna to recover and to flourish.