Checking for bats before starting the chainsaws was all part of a day's work for Department of Conservation rangers felling dangerous trees at Clements Mill Rd in the Kaimanawa recently.
When rangers reported the large beech trees were at risk of falling around a campsite, senior biodiversity ranger Sarah Tunnicliffe advised they may be roost sites for a threatened bat species.
"Both long-tailed and short-tailed pekapeka (bats) are found in the area and like to roost in big old-growth trees like those coming down. We just couldn't risk dropping a tree while they were in it."
The popular camping area was cordoned off with signs to keep people safe.