Wētāpunga conservation success in New Zealand

A 15-year conservation and breeding program in New Zealand has successfully transitioned the wētāpunga, the world’s heaviest insect, from ‘nationally endangered’ to ‘nationally recovering’. Through the collaborative efforts of Butterfly Creek, Auckland Zoo, and the New Zealand Department of Conservation, more than 11,000 individuals have been released into protected environments.

The wētāpunga, scientifically known as ‘Deinacrida heteracantha’, is a member of the orthopteran family that can weigh as much as a mouse. The species faced extinction due to habitat loss and invasive predators such as rats and stoats, which caused it to disappear from the North Island during the 1990s.

To ensure the survival of the nymphs, scientists utilized a specialized diet consisting of fresh foliage and fish scales for protein. Following 45 separate transfers over the last decade and a half, the program has established self-sustaining populations in areas free from invasive predators. Conservation officials noted that the success of this initiative serves as a vital model for protecting other threatened endemic species.