Loved By Robins and Kakapo Alike

Internationally renowned conservationist Don Merton has died in Tauranga, aged 72. “Forest and Bird is extraordinarily grateful for the work Don did over several decades,” Forest and Bird executive member Dr Peter Maddison said. “His legacy is seen in the healthier populations of New Zealand’s most endangered native birds today.” Dr Maddison credited Dr Merton with saving the kakapo, the Chatham Island black robin and other native New Zealand birds from extinction. “He was a guru of the conservation movement.” Dr Merton started working for the Wildlife Service in the late 195s and was involved in eradicating pests such as rats, who were devastating to native birds, from islands offshore from New Zealand, and in the Indian Ocean. Dr Merton was a senior member of the Department of Conservation’s threatened species section before he retired in 25. He was honoured by several environmental awards and a Queen’s Service Medal for services to New Zealand in 1989 and wrote or co-wrote more than 145 publications, including books, articles and scientific papers. Dr Merton was born in Devonport, Auckland in 1939.

Don Merton: 22 February 1939 – 10 April 2011