Kia ora!
It feels like we’re well overdue for an update! What can we say, this past season was nothing short of a whirlwind. Between workshops, tracking, monitoring, long nights in the bush, an alarming amount of coffee, and even hosting the National Pekapeka Hui right here in our own backyard, the season flew by in a blur of mist nets, radio signals, data sheets, and late-night laughs. While we can’t possibly squeeze every adventure and challenge into one newsletter, we wanted to share some of the highlights and give you a look back at the mahi that’s kept us busy over the last few months.
2025–26 season at a glance
We’ve certainly kept busy this season! With some of our biggest catch nights ever, there’s been plenty happening out in the field and in the community. Here’s how the season added up.
- 399 captures this season, taking us past 600 captures all time
- 198 recaptures this season
- 66 males caught, up from 23 last season
- 130 people joined us on a bat walk
- 92 community members trained in acoustic bat monitoring and radio telemetry
Hosting the National Pekapeka Hui 2026
In March, we were lucky enough to host the National Pekapeka Hui right here in Bat Central. Over 180 researchers, consultants, community groups, conservation practitioners, and bat enthusiasts from across Aotearoa came together for three days to share knowledge, celebrate successes, and, of course, talk bats.
Bringing the hui to life was no small feat. Our organising committee spent months behind the scenes planning everything from field trips and speakers to catering and logistics, helping create an event to remember.
The hui shone a spotlight on the incredible mahi happening for pekapeka across the motu. It was also a chance to showcase some of the work happening here in Franklin and welcome so many passionate people to our corner of Aotearoa.
One of the highlights was the strong sense of community throughout the event. The connections made, ideas shared, and collaborations sparked over those few days were a powerful reminder of what we can achieve when we work together for pekapeka.
To everyone who attended, presented, volunteered, sponsored, and helped make the hui possible, ngā mihi nui. You helped make it a truly memorable few days and left us all excited for the future of pekapeka conservation.
Features
We’ve been lucky enough to feature in a few articles and stories lately. Here are some recent highlights featuring our project and the mahi behind it.
Wild Heroes — Season 4, Episode 4
Finding Franklin Bats was featured in Season 4 of Three’s Wild Heroes, a documentary series celebrating the people doing extraordinary things for conservation across Aotearoa. Watch the full episode on ThreeNow.
“We’ve got bats” — Mongabay
International conservation news outlet Mongabay dedicated a full feature to Finding Franklin Bats, tracing the project’s growth from a small volunteer group. The piece puts our mahi on the global conservation radar and shows just how much community-led monitoring can achieve. Read the article.
Funding Finding Franklin Bats — Franklin Times
The Franklin Times covered the project’s latest funding win and what it means for bat monitoring in our rohe. The piece highlights how we’re creating local employment, running community bat walks, and building a growing picture of a healthier pekapeka population right here in Franklin. Read the article.
Champions for Pekapeka: Hui reflections — Restore Rodney East
RRE facilitator Sarah attended the National Pekapeka Hui in Waiuku and shared her reflections on the event. She captures the unified energy of researchers, iwi, and community groups working together for native bats, and the inspiring momentum of young conservationists stepping up across Aotearoa. Read the reflection.
Did you know?
Pekapeka weigh about the same as a $2 coin. At 8–11 grams, the long-tailed bat is one of the world’s smallest bats, yet it can hit 60km/h in flight. Not bad for something roughly the weight of a coin.
Upcoming events
We’re in off-season, so no events are scheduled right now while our bats rest up for next season. Keep an eye on Field Notes & Events — we’ll have dates up as soon as the new season kicks off.
