Geoff, or Woody as he’s known, is responsible for our rabbit and animal pest eradication operations and managing the contractors out in the field.

His conservation career began back in 1993, when he joined a DOC goat hunting team in the Wairarapa. He’s had lots of roles with DOC since. Managing possum trapping and goat hunting teams in Northland, running animal control programmes on the West Coast, overseeing operations on Great Barrier Island and Whangarei.

He even did a stint in Wellington as a private secretary for two Conservation Minister’s – Minister Barry and Minister Sage.

Over his career he’s been involved in many successful island eradication projects. In 1999 Woody headed to the Galapagos Islands. He was tasked with setting up a dog breeding programme and training Spanish hunters to use the dogs to clear 450,000 hectare Isabela Island of goats. To date, it’s the world’s largest ecological island restoration effort.

On Macquarie Island (half way between Tasmania and Antarctica) he was the assistant Project Manager for a pest eradication removing rabbits, rats and mice from the 13,500 hectare island.

Woody reckons his skill set is best suited for the front line and he moved to Twizel as a senior ranger with DOC in 2018. He joined the Te Manahuna Aoraki Project team in 2022.