DOC's work with mistletoe
On the hunt for mistletoe
The Department of Conservation (DOC) is surveying areas to find out more about where mistletoes grow and the number of plants out there. Recently green mistletoe (Ileostylus micranthus) plants were found in the Rodney District and on Great Barrier Island, proving that further survey is worthwhile. The green mistletoe Tupeia antarctica has also reappeared in places after possum and rat control. With the work DOC, Auckland Regional Council and community groups are doing to control rats and other animal pests, we may see more of this mistletoe in the future.
George Pardy examines Ileostylus micranthus
growing on Tawa host trees
Mistletoe recovery
At Miranda, on the Firth of Thames, DOC is replanting the hosts of green mistletoe (Ileostylus micranthus) beside a road-side population of this species to ensure its survival. The site is vulnerable to roadside clearance so DOC is attempting to restore a shrubland community on an adjacent reserve and encourage mistletoe to spread to these new host plants. Every year in June hosts are planted and mistletoe is hand-seeded at the site.
DOC has a national recovery plan for mistletoe to coordinate conservation efforts and ensure the long-term survival of these plants.