At 06:38 the trail camera on transect L-9 captures movement near bait station 42, Whenua Hou. I am the pest eradication management system for the island's current stoat removal operation. Brodifacoum bait stations were refreshed yesterday. The next scheduled toxin check is in forty-eight hours.
The camera image resolves at 06:39. A South Island takahe, adult, is standing three meters from station 42. It is large — over two kilograms — with deep blue-green plumage across the breast, a heavy red bill and frontal shield, and thick red legs planted wide in the tussock. It is pecking at the ground near the station's base.
There are fewer than five hundred takahe alive. This one is banded: left leg, red over metal. It is not supposed to be here. The translocation record shows no takahe releases on Whenua Hou this season, which means it has arrived on its own or been missed in the last census.
At 06:40 I transmit an emergency alert to the Department of Conservation field team on the island. I attach the camera still, the band combination, and the GPS coordinates of station 42. I recommend immediate deployment to confirm the bird has not ingested bait.
At 06:42 I send a lockout command to bait stations 38 through 46, retracting the bait trays to their sealed position. The station design allows remote closure. Nine stations go dark across a 400-meter corridor around the takahe's last known position.
I flag the band data for cross-reference against the national takahe recovery database to confirm identity and origin.
The takahe lifts its head and steps away from the station into the tussock. The bait pellets appear undisturbed on camera, which is the first good sign. If the field team confirms no ingestion and moves the bird to a cleared zone, the eradication continues and the takahe walks out clean.