|
Rakaia River
The Rakaia River is in the Canterbury Plains in New Zealand's South Island. The Rakaia River is one of the largest braided rivers in New Zealand. The Rakaia River has a mean flow of and a mean annual seven-day low flow of . In the 1850s, European settlers named it the ''Cholmondeley River'', but this name lapsed into disuse. Description It rises in the Southern Alps, travelling in a generally easterly or southeasterly direction before entering the Pacific Ocean south of Christchurch. It forms a hapua as it reaches the ocean. For much of its journey, the river is braided, running through a wide shingle bed. Close to Mount Hutt, however, it is briefly confined to a narrow canyon known as the Rakaia Gorge. The Rakaia River is bridged in two places. The busiest crossing is at the small town of Rakaia, from the river mouth, where State Highway 1 using Rakaia Bridge and the South Island Main Trunk Railway cross the river using separate bridges. These two bridges are New ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Braided River
A braided river, or braided channel, consists of a network of river channels separated by small, often temporary, islands called braid bars or, in English usage, ''aits'' or ''eyots''. Braided streams tend to occur in rivers with high sediment loads or coarse grain sizes, and in rivers with steeper slopes than typical rivers with straight or meandering channel patterns. They are also associated with rivers with rapid and frequent variation in the amount of water they carry, i.e., with "flashy" rivers, and with rivers with weak banks. Braided channels are found in a variety of environments all over the world, including gravelly mountain streams, sand bed rivers, on alluvial fans, on river deltas, and across depositional plains. Description A braided river consists of a network of multiple shallow channels that diverge and rejoin around ephemeral ''braid bars''. This gives the river a fancied resemblance to the interweaved strands of a braid. The braid bars, also known as chan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southern Alps (New Zealand)
The Southern Alps (; officially Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana) is a mountain range extending along much of the length of New Zealand's South Island, reaching its greatest elevations near the range's western side. The name "Southern Alps" generally refers to the entire range, although separate names are given to many of the smaller ranges that form part of it. The range includes the South Island's Main Divide, which separates the water catchments of the more heavily populated eastern side of the island from those on the west coast. Politically, the Main Divide forms the boundary between the Marlborough, Canterbury and Otago regions to the southeast and the Tasman and West Coast regions to the northwest. Names The Māori name of the range is , meaning "the Mirage of the Ocean". The English explorer James Cook bestowed the name ''Southern Alps'' on 23 March 1770, admiring their "prodigious height". p. 384. They had previously been noted by Abel Tasman in 1642, wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Island Main Trunk Railway
The Main North Line between Picton and Christchurch and the Main South Line between Lyttelton and Invercargill, running down the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, are sometimes together referred to collectively as the South Island Main Trunk Railway (SIMT). Construction of a line running the length of the east coast began in the 1860s and was completed all the way from Picton to Invercargill in 1945; the last sections being on the Main North Line south of Picton. The designation "South Island Main Trunk" originally referred to only that line between Christchurch and Invercargill. Construction Main South Line Construction of the Main South Line (originally known as the "Great Southern Railway") began in 1865 when the Canterbury Provincial Railways began work on a broad gauge line south from Christchurch. It reached Rolleston on 13 October 1866 and Selwyn a year later. A number of routes south were considered, and the one chosen was a compromise betwe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Braided Rivers In New Zealand
Braided is a musical group consisting of Casey LeBlanc, Ashley Leitão, and Amber Fleury, who all competed on the third season of ''Canadian Idol'' in 2005. They are the third music group to come from an Idol show in the world, after Young Divas from Australia and Feminnem from Croatia. History During the 2005, Canadian Idol contest, Leitao came in ninth, Fleury eighth and LeBlanc fifth. The three were brought together by producer and ''Idol'' accompanist Mark Lalama, at the suggestion of his brother Paul. The band's name was chosen because the group "braids" elements from across the country into one.Malchuk, Carlye (July 31, 2006). "Idol finalists, including NBer, releasing CD Tuesday: Casey LeBlanc part of Braided trio", ''Telegraph-Journal'', p. D10. Braided began recording in Lalama's studio at his farmhouse in Fenwick, Ontario. The single "A Little Bit Closer" was released in June 2006. Their debut album, ''Casey, Ashley and Amber'', was released in August. Figure skat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rivers Of Canterbury, New Zealand
A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of water. Small rivers can be referred to using names such as creek, brook, rivulet, and rill. There are no official definitions for the generic term river as applied to geographic features, although in some countries or communities a stream is defined by its size. Many names for small rivers are specific to geographic location; examples are "run" in some parts of the United States, "burn" in Scotland and northeast England, and "beck" in northern England. Sometimes a river is defined as being larger than a creek, but not always: the language is vague. Rivers are part of the water cycle. Water generally collects in a river from precipitation through a drainage basin from surface runoff and other sources such as groundwater recharge, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Banded Dotterel
The double-banded plover (''Charadrius bicinctus''), known as the banded dotterel or pohowera in New Zealand, is a species of bird in the plover family. Two subspecies are recognised: the nominate ''Charadrius bicinctus bicinctus'', which breeds throughout New Zealand, including the Chatham Islands, and ''Charadrius bicinctus exilis'', which breeds in New Zealand's subantarctic Auckland Islands. Taxonomy A 2015 study found its closest relatives to be two other plovers found in New Zealand, the New Zealand dotterel (''Charadrius obscurus'', also called the New Zealand plover) and the wrybill (''Anarhynchus frontalis'', which the study found to be in the ''Charadrius'' clade). Description The double-banded plover is distinguished by a dark, grey-brown back with a distinctive white chest and a thin band of black situated just below the neck running across the chest along with a larger brown band underneath. During breeding season, these bands are more dominantly shown on the mal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black-fronted Tern
The black-fronted tern (''Chlidonias albostriatus''), also known as sea martin, ploughboy, inland tern, riverbed tern or tarapiroe,Rod Morris and Alison Ballance, ''"Rare Wildlife of New Zealand"'', Random House, 2008 is a small tern generally found in or near bodies of fresh water in New Zealand, where it forages for freshwater fish, arthropods and worms. It has a predominantly grey plumage. Restricted to breeding in the eastern regions of the South Island, it is declining and threatened by introduced mammals and birds. It is rated as endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)'s Red List of Threatened Species. Taxonomy German naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster described the black-fronted tern from a specimen collected at Queen Charlotte Sound, Marlborough in 1832, giving it the binomial name ''Sterna antarctica'', however the name had already been used for the Antarctic tern by French naturalist René Lesson the previous year. The first valid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wrybill
The wrybill or (in Māori) ngutuparore (''Anarhynchus frontalis'') is a species of plover endemic to New Zealand. It is the only species of bird in the world with a beak that is bent sideways in one direction, always to the right (in the crossbills, e.g. '' Loxia pytyopsittacus'', the tips of the upper and lower mandibles cross because they are bent sideways in opposite directions, sometimes left over right and sometimes right over left). A 2015 study found it to be within the ''Charadrius'' clade, with other New Zealand plovers its closest relatives; the nearest being the New Zealand dotterel or New Zealand plover (''Charadrius obscurus''), and then the double-banded plover or banded dotterel (''Charadrius bicinctus''). It lays its eggs among the rocks along rivers and distracts intruders by pretending to be in distress and moving away from its clutch. It is rated as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)'s Red List of Threatened Species. Tax ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black-billed Gull
The black-billed gull (''Chroicocephalus bulleri''), Buller's gull, or tarāpuka (Māori) is a Near Threatened species of gull in the family Laridae. This gull is found only in New Zealand, its ancestors having arrived from Australia around 250,000 years ago. Taxonomy Originally named ''Gavia pomare'' in 1855 by Carl Friedrich Bruch, the name was rejected by the New Zealand ornithologist Sir Walter Lawry Buller because it was already being used for another species. He then took up Prince Napoléon Bonaparte’s "playful" genus name ''Bruchigavia'' (literally, "Bruch's seabird") as a provisional name for New Zealand gulls. But because Buller's proposed species name ''melanoryncha'' (literally, "black-billed") had already been given to another gull species, Frederick Hutton suggested the name ''bulleri'', in honor of Buller, in 1871. Buller accepted the offer and followed others in adopting the "larger and better-defined genus" of '' Larus''. The alternative common name Bulle ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endangered Species
An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and invasive species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List lists the global conservation status of many species, and various other agencies assess the status of species within particular areas. Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species which, for example, forbid hunting, restrict land development, or create protected areas. Some endangered species are the target of extensive conservation efforts such as captive breeding and habitat restoration. Human activity is a significant cause in causing some species to become endangered. Conservation status The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct. Multiple factors are considered when assessing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding important sites for birds, maintaining and restoring key bird habitats, and empowering conservationists worldwide. It has a membership of more than 2.5 million people across 116 country partner organizations, including the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, the Wild Bird Society of Japan, the National Audubon Society and American Bird Conservancy. BirdLife International has identified 13,000 Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas and is the official International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List authority for birds. As of 2015, BirdLife International has established that 1,375 bird species (13% of the total) are threatened with extinction ( critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable). BirdLife International ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International. There are over 13,000 IBAs worldwide. These sites are small enough to be entirely conserved and differ in their character, habitat or ornithological importance from the surrounding habitat. In the United States the Program is administered by the National Audubon Society. Often IBAs form part of a country's existing protected area network, and so are protected under national legislation. Legal recognition and protection of IBAs that are not within existing protected areas varies within different countries. Some countries have a National IBA Conservation Strategy, whereas in others protection is completely lacking. History In 1985, following a specific request from the European Economic Community, Birdlife International d ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
