Geography

Fire & water

Extending some 1400 kilometres northeast from the Bay of Plenty, the Kermadec Arc is the longest underwater volcanic ridge on the planet. It is also highly active, creating great calderas on the sea floor and spewing rafts of pumice that drift on the surface for thousands of kilometres. Scientists are only beginning to understand the diversity of life that takes advantage of this unstable environment.

Magazine

ISSUE 119

Jan - Feb 2013

Tuhoe

Humpback whales

Pateke

Submarine volcanoes

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Geography

Songlines

After centuries of whaling that nearly silenced the song of humpbacks, the singing giants are making a steady recovery in most places. Yet the population of the South Pacific that was hardest hit by Soviet whaling in Antarctica remains endangered, numbering fewer than 4000 individuals.

Living World

Sitting ducks

Eclipsed by better known species in New Zealand’s pantheon of endangered birds, the quirky brown teal was until recently slipping quietly toward extinction. A handful of volunteers and a well-organised captive breeding programme ensured the species’ survival. Now, its future depends on a network of public‑private partnerships that reflect the new, multi-faceted face of conservation.

Geography

Who are Tūhoe?

Romanticised one moment, betrayed the next, the Tūhoe tribe of Te Urewera have been an enigma to outsiders for 150 years. Now, with settlement of its Treaty of Waitangi claims in sight, the iwi reasserts its right to determine its own destiny.

Life

Common senses

Plants and humans might share a surprising amount of DNA, but that doesn’t mean plants like our music.

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