New Zealand Natural History

Part 2

Flora and Fauna

Tourguiding.wordpress.comHillary Jenkins, Otago Polytechnic 2008

IMPORTANT…

Images you are about to see are some of our special places and their inhabitants many of which are ENDEMIC to New Zealand

- Features forming New Zealand’s National Parks and the UNESCO World Heritage Status

- Features which contribute to a booming tourism industry

Before humans…

• The New Zealand islands looked very different than

today

• No mammals except a couple of bat species and the

NZ Fur seal

• An abundance of birds, many flightless

• Large forested areas of prehistoric trees throughout

the country

Let’s take a closer look at the climate zones and at

some of the native plants and animals that live

there today

The Alpine Zone

Glaciers

Braided rivers

Wide open valleys

Ice covered mountains

Aoraki Mount Cook

Mountains & Alpine Valleys

Tussock grasses grow here

600 species of Alpine Plants

93 % found only in New Zealand

Mount Cook Buttercup- the world’s largest buttercup

Daisies and Spaniardsspecially adapted for survival

Miniature brooms

More buttercups, daisies and bristly carrots

Flightless Takahe lives in Alpine tussock

(One known population left in the wild)

Kea - Worlds only Alpine Parrot(only in the South Island of New Zealand)

Invertebrates – food for birds

The Temperate Forests

Podocarp Forests

•Totara

•Kahikatea

•Matai

•Rimu

•Miro

A few precious remnants left

Beech Forests

Sliver

Red

Mountain

Blackwww.flickr.com/photos/33495997@N00/402696291/sizes/m/

Kiwi!?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/76074333@N00/281832147/sizes/m/

Karearea - New Zealand Falcon

NZ Robin and giant native worm

Tieke - Saddleback

Kereru – New Zealand Wood Pigeon

Rare Flightless Parrot Kakapo86 (+ about 5 new babies this year) left in the world

Harakeke – New Zealand Flax

an amazing resource

Piwakawaka (Fantail) and Tui

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8611584@N06/2067358292/sizes/s/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mattbinns/2036385629/sizes/m/

The Subtropical Forest

Dense lush warm forest full of diversity

Ancient Ferns- from 100million years ago

200 species, 40 endemic to New Zealand

More ferns, orchids & mosses

Koru

Nikau Palm

New Zealand’s only true Palm species

Kauri - Tane Mahuta our biggest tree

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sassygagliardi/440514174/sizes/m/

The Coastal Zone

Sand Dunes

Estuaries

Salt Marshes

Headlands

Cormorants on a West Coast Beach

Coastal Flowering Hebe

Penguins and NZ Fur Seals

www.flickr.com/photos/littlebluepenguin/357091278/sizes/m/ www.flickr.com/photos/flissphil/232405333/sizes/m/

Today…

• Threats from introduced predators such as possum, rabbit, stoat, cat , dog & rats

• Threats from development and industry

• Tremendous work being done by DOC and community groups on habitat restoration, species protection & pest control

Further reading

Nature Guide to the New Zealand Forest

by John Dawson and Rob Lucas

New Zealand Alpine Plants

by J T Salmon

Field Guide to Birds of New Zealand

by Heather, B and Robertson, H

www.doc.govt.nz Native Plants

Photo’s by Nicky Snoyink (otherwise stated)