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When a beloved pet is also a pest: the new ban on parrots
As of yesterday three popular species are officially parrota non grata in Auckland. A council ban means that Aucklanders are no longer allowed to breed, distribute or sell rainbow lorikeets, monk parakeets or Indian ringneck parrots. Come 2025, eastern rosellas, galahs and sulphur-crested cockatoos will be off the table, too.
Some consider the bird ban overly drastic. Others see it as essential pest control. These are smart, highly adaptive birds—escaped pets can turn into flocks, spreading disease to native species and squeezing them out of nest sites. They're also very hard to trap.
In issue 177 Ellen Rykers meets some of the people who rear and deeply love these parrots—as well as those who've spent years trying to get wild flocks under control. Keep reading...
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Here's looking at you
Richard Robinson's image of a young southern right whale in Sandy Bay, Port Ross, has just been highly commended at the coveted Wildlife Photographer of the Year awards.
This whale came close for a nosy at Robinson's camera; tohorā are highly tactile, using their nose, fins and tail to investigate floating objects—which puts them at great risk of entanglement.
The picture was published in issue 166, documenting the return of the tohorā to the coasts of New Zealand. Robinson photographed the feature alongside University of Auckland scientist Emma Carroll on an expedition funded by Live Ocean. Read the full story...
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Good to go
Booster’s Innovation Fund aims to get New Zealand capital to work for New Zealand by investing in promising local companies that are trying to solve global problems.
As Melissa Yiannoutsos, the Innovation Fund Manager at Booster, says: “How do we support New Zealand companies to grow? How do we build a future New Zealand? And how do we get more diversity in the kind of companies that make up our economy? We’ve got a good base of companies that generate wealth through the primary sector, but we want to help build more companies off the back of deep research and development and innovation.” [partner content]. Keep reading...
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New issue out now
The Sept/Oct issue of New Zealand Geographic features pest parrots, a new dawn for the Baton Valley, the inside story on siren battles, a feature on new killer algae at Great Barrier Island and historic images of the 1975 Land March. Get it in supermarkets and books stores, or better still, help us keep the lights on by subscribing.
It's not as much as you think—$8.50 every two months for digital, $12 for print or $16.50 for both... a gold coin a week. Check out the options.
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You be the judge (and you, and you)
Our photographer of the year competition is well underway—finalists were announced last week.
To reach this point the judges spent many hours debating the merits of leaping dolphins versus protestors versus precise rooflines versus a rockwren perched—for all the world like an influencer—on an Instagram-worthy peak.
Now it's your turn: voting has opened in the people's choice section. And believe us—even if you're not feeling judgy, it's a pleasure to simply scroll through these finalists. Keep reading...
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