How it all started...
Kuaotunu Bird Rescue started in 2005 when someone brought an abandoned duckling to Annemieke Kregting.
As a veterinary nurse all of her working life, originally trained in Holland, Annemieke was the ideal person for this job.
Local people then started bringing other injured, orphaned or ill wild birds to Annemieke, and Kuaotunu Bird Rescue came into being.
In 2009 Kuaotunu Bird Rescue was licensed by the Department of Conservation, and in 2014 it became a member of WrenNZ which is a rehabilitation organisation in NZ. Membership of WrenNZ enables Kuaotunu Bird Rescue to attend yearly conferences and meet up with other rehabilitators in NZ.
An ever increasing workload
Today Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust handles between 450 and 500 birds per year.
Birds are brought in from the very tip of the Coromandel Peninsula to as far as Whangamata, and include most bush, wading and seabirds, to the more unusual and less frequently seen such as bitterns and albatross.
To better handle this workload Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust has recently upgraded its hospital which now has a critical care/treatment room and 3 aviaries, plus a native bird isolation unit.
Establishment of a charitable trust
Annemieke has always been grateful for the support she receives from the Kuaotunu community who have assisted her over the years in the ever-increasing workload involved in looking after such numbers of birds.
Kuaotunu locals have provided not only financial support but also gifts of food and supplies and help with feeding, cleaning etc.
In 2018 Annemieke decided that the work of Kuaotunu Bird Rescue needed to be formalised via the establishment of a Charitable Trust, so that she could access more sustainable funding for the work she does. The Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust was formed in October 2019.
Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust could not continue to operate without the support of a fantastic network of people from the local Kuaotunu community who, over the years, have consistently contributed their time to help out with the daily workload.
The Trust has also enjoyed the assistance of many local school students during the years. We love working with young people who are keen to learn!
In addition to helping out in the hospital itself, the Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust is also grateful to those local individuals who love driving and who are happy to pick up sick or injured birds from around the peninsula.
If volunteering for the Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust sounds like something you'd like to do, please get in touch.
A complex and demanding job
Caring for wild birds until they are well enough to be rehabilitated into the wild is a job that requires dedication, specialised knowledge and endless patience.
As an authorised wildlife rehabilitator, Kuaotunu Bird Rescue Trust takes responsibility for its feathered patients through all stages of their recovery, including the initial first aid and diagnostic process, the ongoing care and feeding of recuperating birds, and their eventual (if possible) release into the wild.
In addition to these tasks Annemieke Kregting of Kuaotunu Bird Rescue is a certified bander of native birds, and donates a significant amount of time to the education of the wider community (particularly young people) on the importance of caring for wildlife.