New high country reserve for poorly hopping grasshopper that avoids grass

Wednesday, 25 July 2018

The robust grasshopper is critically threatened and exists only in the Mackenzie Basin.

A threatened part of the high country will become a reserve for a unique native species - a grasshopper that avoids grass and struggles to hop.

A 440ha section near Tekapo in the South Island's Mackenzie Basin will be added to the conservation estate to protect a population of the highly endangered Brachaspis robustus - commonly known as the robust grasshopper.

A small robust grasshopper camouflaging into stones.

There are a few thousand robust grasshoppers left, all within the basin, where they live on the glacial outwashes and braided rivers of the unique landscape.

The reserve move is the result of a deal, which allows the Department of Conservation (DOC) to take control of Crown land if it is deemed to have high conservation value, without having to pay for it.

The rocky habitat favoured by the grasshopper.

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The giant species has several unusual characteristics. It can't fly and is a poor jumper, so survives largely by camouflaging into its stony habitat and playing dead. Females can be as much as five times heavier than males, and they survive sub-zero temperatures in the winter.

The species is never found in vegetation, preferring to blend in to the stony riverbeds.

While those traits make it resistant to the weather extremes of its habitat - hence its name - it is particularly vulnerable to predators such as hedgehogs and cats, which stalk the riverbeds for food.

Another major threat to the species is the expansion of farming in the district, which has reduced their habitat.

The triangular reserve is tucked between two large farms, around 8km south of Tekapo. It contains the largest known grasshopper population, with about 500 individuals, which appears to be stable. It could be used to bolster smaller populations outside the triangle.

'The robust grasshopper is a Mackenzie Basin icon,' Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage said.

'Protecting the Tekapo Triangle will provide a safe refuge and nursery that with the control of rabbits, feral cats, invasive weeds and other pests will help this distinctive grasshopper to thrive.'

The reserve also had threatened landscapes, including dry land moraine and outwash plains, Sage said.

Because it was Crown land managed by Land Information New Zealand (LINZ), the triangle had less legal protection than it would as a reserve under DOC control.

The transfer between the agencies is a result of a 2009 agreement which allows DOC to take land with high conservation value by adjusting each department's Crown balance sheets, rather than through a monetary payment.

The two Government agencies have been subject to criticism over their historical management of the ecologically-sensitive area.

The management approach is undergoing a 'realignment,' following a report released in February that recommended better coordination between the authorities involved.

The report made 25 recommendations for how the agencies could better work together, largely centred on the need for a shared vision. At the time, Sage - the minister responsible for both agencies - said the Basin had suffered 'a disconnect between agencies and muddled responsibilities.'

The area has been a focal point for recent battles between farming and conservation interests, including a long-running court battle - which has entered its second decade.

It has been inflamed by the controversial tenure review process, which has unlocked vast tracks of land for development.