On a windswept beach 465km south of New Zealand, a two-week-old sea lion pup waits for his mother to return from the hunt.
Cecil huddles with other pups in the tussock grass of Maukahuka / Auckland Island while his mother navigates fishing grounds where nets claimed 23 sea lions last year alone. Last breeding season, a Department of Conservation field team counted only 1,376 pups across the colony – continuing a decline that saw these magnificent animals reclassified as “nationally endangered” in April 2025.
Your gift this Christmas can transform Cecil’s chances of survival by protecting the very ground beneath his flippers.
NZ Sea Lion Colony. Photo: A Woods, Heritage Expeditions
One hectare can save a life
A sea lion pup’s world spans roughly one hectare of coastal habitat where sand meets tussock, where mothers nurse their young before departing on week-long fishing expeditions that take them 200 kilometers from shore. Within this precious space, pups learn to swim in tide pools, shelter from giant petrels in the vegetation, and eventually catch their first fish.
The threats are immediate and measurable. Feral cats, pigs, and mice have already driven 32 native bird species to local extinction on the main Auckland Island. The pigs destroy coastal vegetation that provides shelter, while mice consume the invertebrates that form the base of the food web.
Lou Sanson, former Director-General of the Department of Conservation and current New Zealand Nature Fund trustee, describes Maukahuka as “arguably the most intact, least modified wild place in all of New Zealand.” He knows that restoring these 46,000 hectares will create NZ’s largest pest-free Subantarctic island – a Living Ark safeguarding some of the world’s rarest species.
Adopt Cecil or Restore a Hectare now – From $300 →
Sea Lion pup. Photo: Ewen Bell.
A conservation story your family can follow all year
Picture Christmas morning when your child opens their adoption certificate and meets Cecil through his photograph and a cuddly plush toy – those enormous eyes that evolved to see through murky subantarctic waters, the whiskers that help him hunt in darkness. This becomes a connection to real conservation work, a story you’ll track through quarterly updates as Cecil grows from a 15-kilogram pup to a 450-kilogram powerful Bull, who will one day patrol these same waters.
As a supporter, you’ll follow Cecil’s world through seasonal updates – glimpses of the colony, wildlife antics on the beaches, the changing landscape, and the exciting signs of recovery unfolding on the Auckland Islands.
Create your family’s conservation legacy →
Choose your level of impact:
For yourself, or as a meaningful Christmas gift.
$300 – Cecil Adoption Package
Your gift provides:
- Personalised adoption certificate featuring Cecil’s photograph
- Story card introducing Cecil and his Subantarctic home
- Plush sea lion toy shipped to NZ-based gift recipients
- Quarterly conservation updates following Cecil’s journey
- Educational materials about Auckland Island ecosystems
- Tax-deductible receipt for New Zealand donors
$1,000 – Hectare Guardian Package
Your investment includes:
- Everything in the adoption package
- Regular restoration reports and field updates
- Legacy recognition as a Maukahuka Restoration Guardian
- Certificate suitable for gifting or inheritance
Your hectare awaits its guardian
The Auckland Islands emerged from the sea 20 million years ago and evolved in isolation to host species found nowhere else: endemic teal, snipe, shags, and tomtits, along with megaherbs that create flower fields unlike anything on mainland New Zealand. This evolutionary laboratory survived ice ages and volcanic eruptions only to face its greatest threat from introduced mammals in the last 200 years.
Lou Sanson emphasises that successful restoration requires collective action: “Every little bit helps. It’s who we are as New Zealanders to care for nature.” By adopting a hectare, you join a movement to reverse two centuries of degradation and restore one of Earth’s last pristine Subantarctic ecosystems.
This Christmas, give a gift that extends beyond the holiday season, beyond even your lifetime. Give Cecil and hundreds of his descendants a future on an island restored to its natural glory.
[Adopt Cecil – $300] [Restore a Hectare – $1,000]
NZ Sea Lion in megaherbs. Photo: K Osyanikova, Heritage Expeditions.
Digital gift packages can be provided within 24 hours of order. Physical packages must be ordered before December 13 for Christmas delivery.
The New Zealand Nature Fund works in partnership with the Department of Conservation to protect and restore Aotearoa’s most threatened ecosystems. Your support makes this work possible.
