The CUE Haven Community Trust deed states that the CUE Haven reserve is for the community to use for education and quiet enjoyment. We are delighted that over the years more educators and researchers are utilising the reserve to learn more about nature. During 2025 CUE Haven welcomed a variety of people for various environmental research activities.

Carbon Sequestration By Native Trees

A team from Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research and Ti Uru Rakau, the New Zealand Forest Service, spent three days at CUE Haven as part of their continuing research for the Emissions Trading Scheme gathering data and doing tests to measure how much carbon is sequestered by native trees.

Ever since the restoration of CUE Haven began in 2008, we have kept detailed records of the tree species and areas around the property where these trees were planted. This data has been very useful and was also used by the team in their research to calculate how carbon sequestration rates change as native trees mature.

Lichen & Moss Research

Dr. Dan Blanchon, Curator of Botany at the Auckland War Memorial Museum, and Max Corlett, graduate student at Auckland University of Technology, embarked on a long term study of lichens and mosses at CUE Haven.

The project started with a pilot study with translocation of lichens to CUE Haven from nearby Mataia. They will monitor these lichens over the coming months and years to determine whether certain species of translocated lichens are able to get established in new locations.

Additionally, Dan and Max are researching other lichens and mosses growing at CUE Haven.

Follow up monitoring work:

Entomology Research

The Natural Sciences Entomology team from the Auckland War Memorial Museum embarked on an ongoing study to determine the variety and number of the insects and invertebrates in various areas of the regenerating and mature forest at CUE Haven.  The CUE Haven volunteer cottage was used for their field work at night.

The study is led by Dr. Ruby Moore, Dr. Melissa Kirk, and Dr. Keziah D’Sousa of Auckland Museum and Dr. Leilani Walker, Faculty of Environmental Sciences at Auckland University of Technology.

They gathered specimens in the field and also set out traps.

Auckland Entomological Society – Field Trip

The Auckland Entomological Society members had a field trip to CUE Haven with several members of the Auckland Museum entomology team. Society members spent the day exploring the entire property identifying many different insects and also checking out the insects that had collected in the various traps. The star entomologists for the day were teenagers Kai and Keegan who impressed everyone with their knowledge and enthusiasm.

Bird Study

Dr Josie Galbraith, Curator of Land Vertebrates at the Auckland War Memorial Museum, and Dr Kristal Cain, Associate Professor Biological Sciences at The University of Auckland, are working on a long term study to identify and monitor the health and numbers of bird species in regenerating native reserves.

Joining Josie and Kristal for their first of many visits to CUE Haven and to learn more about banding and doing health checks on land birds, were marine bird specialist Dr Gaia Dell’Arricia, Kamya Patel, bird researcher and PhD candidate at University of Auckland, Olga Biriukova & Darryl Jeffries from the Biology Collections team at Auckland Museum, and bird enthusiasts Sonya, Stacy and Yefi.

The team installed 6 mist nets at different locations in the CUE Haven bush to catch the birds for banding and doing health checks prior to releasing them back into the bush. It is heartening to see the variety of bird life now residing at CUE Haven and we look forward to more native birds making CUE Haven their home.

U3A Warkworth – Ornithology Group

The ornithology group from the Warkworth U3A (University of theThird Age) spent a day at CUE Haven exploring and checking out the bird life.

Roger Williams, friend and past volunteer of CUE Haven, was part of the group that day.  He returned a few days later and gifted us a lovely painting he did of the view from Te Rite o Taranaki after the group’s visit to the viewing platform. Thank you, Roger for your continued support and beautiful gift which is now displayed in the CUE Haven volunteer cottage.

Our thanks to everyone who used CUE Haven for their research and for field trips. We enjoyed meeting you all and have learnt a lot from you. We look forward to having you all out again for continuing research in the new year.