Thank you to David Tait and Twisted Frequency Festival for supporting the Wētā Conservation Charitable Trust
The main stage at the 2026 Twisted Frequency Festival in the Cobb River, Takaka, featuring a Mt Arthur giant wētā. Photo © LB Photography
Twisted Frequency Festival is an annual event running since 2014; it is held over New Year in the Cobb Valley near Takaka.
Every year the festival celebrates a unique New Zealand creature by building a ‘totem animal’ sculpture that adorns the main stage. The festival also sells custom merchandise featuring the selected creature. All proceeds from sales go towards conservation of the animal.
In 2026, Twisted Frequency Festival selected the Nationally Critical Mt Arthur giant wētā (Deinacrida tibiospina) as a totem animal. Festival organizers decided to donate the income generated by the merchandise, just under NZ$ 2,000, to the Wētā Conservation Charitable Trust.
This is a significant donation for us. We are grateful to Twisted Frequency Festival and to its patrons for supporting us, in spite of the very difficult environmental conditions they had endure this year.
