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Right now, seven rangers are preparing for a summer of nest-minding. They'll be keeping an watchful eye on a little shorebird as it attempts to raise its young on busy Northland and Auckland beaches. There are about 40 fairy terns left in existence, making it the rarest bird in the country. It’s got everything going against it: weather, cats, its own DNA, and the fact that humans love the white-sand beaches where it raises its young. Only a small group of people, many of them volunteers, stand between it and oblivion. Fairy tern nests will be monitored around the clock, as the Department of Conservation and a volunteer army hopes to repeat the success of last year, when seven chicks grew up to join the population. Keep reading...
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Our rarest bird tries againRight now, seven fairy tern rangers are preparing for a summer of nest-minding. They'll be keeping an watchful eye on a little shorebird as it attempts to raise its young on busy Northland and Auckland beaches over the Christmas holidays. |
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See the best photographs of 2020The 2020 Photographer of the Year exhibition is now open at the New Zealand Maritime Museum on the corner of Quay and Hobson Streets. See all 40 finalists and vote on your favourites for the Ockham People's Choice award. Plans are falling into place also for the Photographer of the Year awards night on October 29. Pencil in the date—tickets will be released next week, 100 only. |
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Freshwater quality isn't improvingAn annual study of 1500 rivers and streams around the country shows no improvement in water quality, but waterways aren't degrading further. Urban streams, which comprise about one per cent of waterways, have the worst water quality of all. Here's a look at why that's the case in Auckland. The best-quality water is in catchments surrounded by native bush, while a significant proportion of waterways in rural areas are under pressure from numerous sources. Here's a look at what's affecting our rivers, and how we could fix them. |
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