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Wildlife trafficking is a large-scale multi-billion dollar industry worldwide. The illegal trade of wildlife has reached such prominence that it has the potential to devastate source populations of wildlife, impacting on the integrity and productivity of ecosystems in providing food and resources to the local economy. In order to protect these resources, legislation has been put in place to control the trade of wildlife in almost every country worldwide. Those assigned with enforcing these laws have the monumental task of identifying the exact species that are being traded, either as whole living plants or animals, as parts that are dried, fried or preserved, or as derivatives contained within commercial products.

This report provides a comprehensive yet simple guide to the construction and use of a Geographic Information System (GIS) for collating, analysing, updating and managing data in wildlife management or research projects. The spatial analysis of yellow-eyed penguin (hoiho, Megadyptes antipodes) nest site data from Boulder Beach. Otago Peninsula, is used as an example. The report describes the key components used in the construction of the GIS, which included aerial photography, a digital elevation model and habitat map of the study area, and nest site data collected at Boulder Beach between 1982 and 1996. The procedures for estimating the geographic locations of nest sites using historical hand-drawn sketch maps are also described, demonstrating the potential for incorporating and analysing historical datasets in this type of GIS. The resulting GIS was used to conduct simple spatial analyses of some of the characteristics of yellow-eyed penguin nesting habitat selection, as well as the densities of nest sites in each type of nesting habitat at Boulder Beach. The sources of error, uncertainty and other limitations of this and other GIS arc described, along with procedures and steps to minimise and avoid them. The yellow-eyed penguin GIS described in this report provides an example of the potential utility of GIS in ecological research and management of both yellow-eyed penguins and many other species.

In June/July 2002 the eradication of Pacific rats from Maninita Island in the Vava'u group of the Kingdom of Tonga was attempted using Brodifacoum pellets in bait stations. In December 2002, Maninita was revisited and rat trapping carried out to determine if rats were present. While no rats were caught and none were seen, further monitoring in June 2003 is recommended before the island is declared "rat free '. Using the same techniques used on Maninita, the eradication of rats on neighbouring Taula and Lua Loli was attempted. Despite poor weather delaying rebaiting visits to the islands, the operation thus far appears successful. Permanent bait stations set up on Maninita to minimise the risk of rats re-invading the island were found to have been tampered with and evidence of booby chick harvesting was seen on Taula. Regular visits to the islands to maintain bait stations and maintain a presence are recommended.

On 6 January 2004. cyclone Heta devastated much of the South Pacific island nation of Niue. Extensive damage was done to forest, particularly of the north- western sector, with many trees up-rooted and others stripped of branches and foliage. This report details our findings from a survey of Niue's birds and rodents during 3-19 September 2004 and compares these with results from a similar survey in September 1994. Five-minute bird count data, an index of conspicuousness, from three transects showed that heahea (Polynesian triller,Lalagc maculosa) were more abundant in 2004 than in 1994, but mid (Polynesian starling, Aplonis tabuensis), kulukulu (purple-crowned fruit dove. Ptilinopus porpbyraecus) and lupe (Pacific pigeon. Ducula pacifica) had declined. The 28-64% decline in the lupe population per transect w as probably primarily as a result of hunting, rather than mortality caused by cyclone Heta. Counts of birds seen per kilometre along three sections of road (lower, upper, inland) were also compared with September 1994 data. However, for various reasons we doubt that the results accurately reflect population numbers. The 212 kiu (Pacific golden plover. Pluvial is fulva) counted at sites accessible from main roads in September 2004 was similar to the 226 seen in September 1994. Rat trapping results (captures per 100 trap-nights) along the same three transects for December 1994 and September 2004 were not significantly different. Both kuma (Pacific rat. Rattus exulans) and ship rats (R. rattus) were trapped, but kuma were found only in regenerating scrub, whereas ship rats were present in both scrub and forest. Recommendations for future work are made mainly in relation to the long-term conservation of lupe, a toaga (treasured) species of Niueans.

Since 1987, I have assisted the Cook Islands Conservation/Environment Service and, more recently, the Takitumu Conservation Area Project and the Avifauna Conservation Programme of the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) to plan and implement a recovery programme for the kakerori, a critically endangered forest bird endemic to Rarotonga. In 1989, the kakerori was one of the 10 rarest birds in the world, and classified as 'critically endangered' (Collar et al. 1994) with a population of just 29 birds. I calculated that there was a 50% chance of kakerori becoming extinct by 1998 unless nest predation by rats was significantly reduced. During each breeding season since 1989, rats have been poisoned in the 155 ha of forest occupied by kakerori (Robertson et al. 1998) and the effectiveness of this work has been measured by- recording breeding productivity (Saul et al. 1998), and by undertaking an annual census the following spring (Robertson 1998, 1999).