Rowe Bush
HAWKE’S BAY | LAUNCHED 7TH JANUARY 2026
Rowe Bush had never been surveyed for bats, so we simply did not know whether long-tailed bats, or any other species, were still present. From a habitat point of view it looks like everything they need: a substantial block of native bush, the Tukituki River running alongside, and wetlands and stock ponds next door. It also sits roughly ten kilometres from Mohi Bush, which makes it a natural next question. If bats are using Mohi, how far might they be ranging across this landscape? That is why we opened the project here. Scroll on for what the nights are telling us.
Rowe Bush is one of our Pekapeka Patrol monitoring projects, following a clear, step-by-step approach to building a better understanding of local bat populations:
We begin by Establishing whether bats are present and which species are using the area. From there, we work to Understand where and when bats are active, before moving into Act & Innovate, using what we learn to inform practical action on the ground. We then Build Capacity by sharing knowledge and insights, while continuing to Monitor over time to track activity and change.
This page follows the project as the work unfolds, sharing our objectives, field notes, maps and emerging insights. Right now, we're in Phase 1: Establish.
Follow along as we begin to uncover what's happening around Rowe Bush or join the National Bat Survey as a Pekapeka Patroller at the bottom of the page to get involved!
Are bats here?
Which species?
What are they doing?
What’s changing?
Our Pekapeka Patrol Sponsors
Thank you, Wildlife Acoustics
A huge thank you to Wildlife Acoustics for generously sponsoring equipment for our Mahana Road, Rowe Bush and Mohi Bush projects.
Your support helps make our acoustic monitoring work possible, allowing us to gather valuable data and build a better understanding of the bats living in these landscapes.
We’re incredibly grateful to have your support in helping us learn more about, and protect, our native pekapeka.
Objectives
Each project delivers to ten key objectives. To see an overview of objective steps, .
Phase
Phase 1, in progress. To see an overview of project phases, .
Site
Rowe Bush (5km): 78.5 km² (7,850 ha), 10 km across. Special thanks to the Phillips family for giving access to their lowland forest. Thanks also to Peter Fowler, who owns land in Hapua that hosts long-term monitoring. Thanks also to Susan and Mike Hunsberger for the use of their land.
Deliverables & success criteria
Acoustic survey phase 1 findings report. To see the full breakdown by objective, .
| Activity | Description/frequency |
|---|---|
| Detector deployment | Scales progressively through each survey phase — from initial small-scale deployment (Obj 1) to broader coverage (Obj 2, 3 & 5). |
| Field visits | Install / service (SD swap) / retrieval — approx. monthly. |
| Data processing | The Bat Pack, with manual verification. |
| Analysis | Manual analysis to understand site use and identify hotspots. |
| Reporting | Ongoing website content, plus a formal annual report after the season (e.g. August). Includes cross-site comparison where relevant. |
| Trialling innovative techniques New |
Trials of new conservation actions/survey methods as introduced — reported annually. |
| Threat ID & conservation recs New |
Annual review of threats present, feeding conservation recommendations. |
| Landowner/partner liaison | Monthly, tied to the detector check visit — short text or video update. |
| Education & awareness | Shared content and resources — weekly. |
DOC Bat Recovery Plan – objective alignment
The 1995 DOC Bat (Pekapeka) Recovery Plan sets out five national objectives guiding bat conservation in Aotearoa. Rowe Bush directly contributes to four of these.
- Research. Our ongoing survey and monitoring work builds the evidence base needed for effective bat management.
- Status evaluation. Establishing presence, species, and distribution data contributes to national understanding.
- Protection and monitoring. Long-term monitoring supports population tracking across the species' range.
- Public awareness. Sharing this project's progress helps build public involvement in bat conservation.
The Plan's remaining objective concerns island-based short-tailed bat translocation, outside the scope of this mainland monitoring project.
Read recovery planProject objectives
| # | Objective |
|---|---|
| 1 | Establish presence and species (via acoustic survey) |
| 2 | Refine understanding of activity/distribution across the project area (ongoing survey — may reveal additional species) |
| 3 | Identify hotspots (foraging/commuting/roosting) and seasonality of activity/distribution |
| 4 | Identify threats and recommend conservation actions, based on findings from Objectives 1–3 |
| 5 | Establish a long-term monitoring site — track activity over time as a proxy for colony health and a wider indicator |
| 6 | Trial and develop innovative conservation and survey techniques (e.g. roost boxes, refined methods) |
| 7 | Cross-site comparison and standardised reporting, using a consistent graphical template — also an educational resource for other ecologists |
| 8 | Raise awareness and build community engagement — social media, blog, video sharing the project journey (runs from Phase 1, continuously) |
| 9 | Landowner and community relationship-building (runs from Phase 1, continuously) |
| 10 | Capacity building and training, delivered online — matures once there's real project substance to teach from |
Project phases
Swipe to see more→
| # | Phase | Description | Objectives introduced | Objectives continuing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Establish | Confirm presence, species, initial activity | 1, 8, 9 | — |
| 2 | Understand | Full picture of distribution, hotspots, seasonality, cross-site comparison | 2, 3, 7 | 8, 9 |
| 3 | Act & Innovate | Recommend/trial conservation actions and techniques | 4, 6 | 8, 9 |
| 4 | Build Capacity | Training content matures now there's substance to teach from | 10 | 8, 9 |
| 5 | Monitor | Long-term monitoring established and ongoing | 5 | 8, 9, 10 |
Deliverables & success criteria
Swipe to see more→
| Objective | Deliverable(s) | Success Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Presence & species | Brief report + map, downloadable/shareable, branded | Survey completed; species confirmed present (or absence established with confidence) |
| 2. Activity & distribution | Per-survey report + maps, shown consistently (Survey 1, 2, Cumulative) | Sufficient coverage achieved to characterise activity patterns |
| 3. Hotspots & seasonality | Hotspot map + seasonal comparison maps | Key hotspots identified; seasonal variation documented |
| 4. Threats & recommendations | Recommendations report/section | Actionable, evidence-based recommendations from Objectives 1–3 |
| 5. Long-term monitoring | Permanent site established (e.g. SM5), sited at a hotspot; feeds Obj 7 | Site operational, collecting data on an ongoing (e.g. annual) basis |
| 6. Trial techniques | Brief paper/blog + video/social content | Trial completed and documented with clear findings |
| 7. Cross-site comparison | Comparative analysis using a standardised graphical template | Comparison completed with ≥1 other site, using the template |
| 8. Awareness & engagement | Active social presence; direct public/volunteer engagement | Channels active, regularly producing content; genuine engagement |
| 9. Landowner relationships | (relationship-based) | Landowners hosting the monitoring site are on board and supportive |
| 10. Capacity building | Online training content (video, blog, social) | Training material published on the website |
Field Notes
A running diary from the field — updated whenever there's something worth logging from a site visit, detector check or survey.
Scroll to see more entries
Field Observations
19 Oct 2026
Big bulls, lost cable ties and a roost hint
Beautiful sunny day back at Rowe Bush — amazing to be out in the bush doing this project. What a privilege. Batteries changed and detectors repositioned, though my Site 1 long-term unit is playing up a little. I lost my reusable cable ties pushing through the bush, so only one new detector went out instead of five. Six now active. Two huge but kind-natured bulls took a keen interest, so I stayed the right side of the fence. Best of all, a quick scan of the recordings in the field hinted I may finally have found a roosting area, in the northeastern corner of the bush.
5 Sep 2026
Out with Anna — batteries and four more boxes
Brilliant day back at Rowe Bush with landowner Anna, who showed me around and was happy to talk all things bats and bat roosts. We changed the batteries on the Site 1 detector (long-term monitoring site) and set out four more units — the aim of these is to follow up on social call recordings in the hope of finding a roosting area. Five detectors now ticking away at Rowe. Great company, great conversation, and a fun day in the bush.
7 Aug 2026
Huge retrieve day — thank goodness for the ATV
All the detectors came home from Sites 3–33 — 31 units in one go. Massive thanks to the landowner for lending me their ATV; without it, walking and lugging that many detectors would have been a much longer day. Same day I moved a unit onto Site 1 for longer-term monitoring. I was buzzing to get the cards into the lab — already the beginnings of a pattern emerging across the grid. The stock pond appeared to be the centre of activity.
4 Jul 2026
Grid survey — detectors every ~100 m
Went to extreme measures for a very high-resolution look at this piece of bush: 31 detectors across Sites 3–33, set roughly every 100 metres in a grid. That is well above and beyond what a typical consultancy survey would deploy here — but if we want the fine grain of where bats are actually using the bush, this is how I think you’d do it. Can we really find roosting areas with acoustics alone?
20 Jan 2026
Detectors retrieved — Sites 1–2
Beautiful summer day to pull the initial prospecting detectors back in. Cards and units home for lab review — and that nervous excitement of still not knowing whether this unknown bit of bush would talk to us at all. Were there even bats here?
7 Jan 2026
Prospecting trip
Summertime and gorgeous. I knew almost nothing about Rowe Bush yet, so this was a true prospecting trip: two detectors out to see if bats were even here. One by the pond — foraging over water felt like the logical first bet. The other on the bush edge next to the river, where I figured if bats were about, that corridor would be a good place to catch them.
The Data – Rowe Bush
Explore the latest monitoring data, see where activity is being recorded and follow what we’re learning about bats across the project area.
Survey nights
All-time detector-nights of listening effort across all sites.
Sites monitored
Species: Long-tailed bat
Bat passes recorded
Detector nights (effort)
Social call recordings
Weekly bat activity
Long term monitoring site (1) only. Destination: 52wk coverage.
Each spoke is one week of the year, length and shade showing how much activity the bat detector at our long-term monitoring site picked up. As more seasons of data come in, this builds into a richer year-round “fingerprint” for the site — and doubles as visible evidence of long-term monitoring once it shows near-full-year coverage. A red line at the base means the detector wasn’t recording that week.
Activity & distribution maps
Click a map to zoom in.
How this compares to other projects
| Project | Survey Nights | Bat Passes Recorded | Call-type breakdown | Last update | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mahana Bush | 101 | 7,479 | 21 Oct 2026 | Active | |
| Mohi Bush | 901 | 10,090 | 18 Sep 2026 | Active | |
| Rowe Bush | 1,276 | 32,729 | 21 Oct 2026 | Active |
Call-type key
- Echolocation
- Foraging
- Commuting
- Social
Expert on the ground
Mark Roper
Ecologist and Founder of The Bat Co. Lab
With more than 20 years of experience across freshwater, fish and bat ecology, Mark brings deep ecological expertise to every project. His work combines scientific rigour, practical field experience and a commitment to building better knowledge and outcomes for bats across Aotearoa.
Through The Bat Co. Lab, Mark combines specialist consultancy with practical tools and innovative approaches to bat monitoring. He is also passionate about making ecological knowledge more accessible and creating opportunities for communities to contribute to bat conservation.
Our project partners
With thanks
We would like to extend our sincere thanks to the Phillips family and Susan and Mike Hunsberger for generously allowing us access to their land as part of the Rowe Bush project. We would also like to thank Peter Fowler, who took part in our Echoes Around Te Mata project last season. Peter is a landowner whose property (Hapua) includes a lake where long-tailed bats have been detected, hosts a long-term monitoring site, and volunteered during last year’s citizen science survey. Their support and willingness to host our bat detectors has helped make this important monitoring work possible, contributing valuable information to our understanding of the bats that call this landscape home.
We are incredibly grateful to have their support in helping us learn more about and protect these unique species.
Support bat conservation in action
Support from our community helps turn bat conservation into real, measurable action. Donations fund fieldwork, detector deployment, rapid data analysis, and community-led projects that improve understanding of bat populations and the environments they depend on. Every contribution directly supports practical, science-led work on the ground.
Want to get involved?
Do you live within the project area? Interested in having bat detectors placed on your property? Help us uncover more about the bats living in your local area.
Support the project and help make this research possible. Your sponsorship goes towards the time, expertise and fieldwork needed to monitor and protect our local bat populations.
Follow our journey.
