|
Tāwharanui Regional Park
Tāwharanui Regional Park is a regional park on the Tāwharanui Peninsula in the Auckland Region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located in Rodney, east of Warkworth and north of Auckland. The park covers 588 hectares of land at the end of the peninsula, and is owned and managed by Auckland Council.Tāwharanui Marine Reserve Department of Conservation. Geography The park combines a " mainland island" sanctuary for the conservation of native plants and animals with farmland and public recreation areas. The park is mostly grazed pasture with[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rodney (local Board Area)
Rodney is a local government area in the northernmost part of New Zealand's Auckland Region, governed by the Rodney Local Board and Auckland Council. It currently aligns with the council's Rodney Ward. The area was part of the Rodney District between 1989 and 2010, and part of Helensville Borough and Rodney County until 1989. Rodney is named from Cape Rodney (opposite Little Barrier Island), which Captain James Cook named on 24 November 1769 after Admiral Sir George Brydges Rodney. Rodney includes Kawau Island, Kumeu and Huapai, Helensville, Warkworth, Matakana and Wellsford. The Kaipara Harbour is the largest enclosed harbour in the Southern Hemisphere. The area has a rural economy. Dairy farming, horticulture, winemaking, forestry and tourism are major industries. There are several lifestyle blocks, retirement homes and holiday homes close to Auckland. The Kaipara Harbour and surrounding area is within the tribal area of Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara Ngāti Whātua o Kaipa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tōtara
''Podocarpus totara'' (; from the Maori-language ; the spelling "totara" is also common in English) is a species of podocarp tree endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island and northeastern South Island in lowland, montane and lower subalpine forest at elevations of up to 600 m. Tōtara is commonly found in lowland areas where the soil is fertile and well drained. Description The tōtara is a medium to large tree, which grows slowly to around 20 to 25 m, exceptionally to 35 m; it is noted for its longevity and the great girth of its trunk. The bark peels off in papery flakes, with a purplish to golden brown hue. The sharp, dull-green, needle-like leaves are stiff and leathery, 2 cm long. This plant produces highly modified cones with two to four fused, fleshy, berry-like, juicy scales, bright red when mature. The cone contains one or two rounded seeds at the apex of the scales. The largest known living tōtara, the Pouakani Tree, near Pureora in the ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Te Kawerau ā Maki
Te Kawerau ā Maki, Te Kawerau a Maki, or Te Kawerau-a-Maki is a Māori ''iwi'' (tribe) of the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It had 251 registered adult members as of June 2017. Auckland Council gave it land for a marae at Te Henga (Bethells Beach) in 2018; it has no ''wharenui'' (meeting house) yet. History Te Kawerau ā Maki are the descendants of the ''rangatira'' (chief) Maki and his wife Rotu, who migrated with their family and followers from Kawhia to Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland) in the early 1600s. Te Kawerau trace their ancestry from a number of Māori migration canoes, particularly the Tainui, but also Aotea, Tokomaru, Kahuitara and Kurahaupō. Tainui ancestors including Hoturoa and the tohunga Rakataura (Hape) are particularly important in Te Kawerau whakapapa, as is the ancient turehu ancestor and tohunga Tiriwa. Maki and his people were related to a number of groups who had occupied the Auckland region since the fourteenth century, including the Tainui ''hapū'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tāmaki Māori
Tāmaki Māori are Māori ''iwi'' and ''hapū'' (tribes and sub-tribes) who have a strong connection to Tāmaki Makaurau (the Auckland Region), and whose rohe was traditionally within the region. Among Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau (the Māori tribes of Auckland), also known as the Tāmaki Collective, there are thirteen iwi and hapū, organised into three rōpū (collectives), however Tāmaki Māori can also refer to subtribes and historical iwi not included in this list. Ngāti Whātua Rōpū Ngāti Whātua descend from the '' Māhuhu-ki-te-rangi'' waka, which landed north of the Kaipara Harbour. The rōpū includes Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei and Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Whātua. Te Rūnanga o Ngāti Whātua is a Māori Trust Board formed in the mid 2000s to represent the interests of Ngāti Whātua iwi and hapū collectively, including those outside of Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei. The rūnanga represents Ngā Oho, Ngāi Tāh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Variable Oystercatcher
The variable oystercatcher (''Haematopus unicolor'') is a species of wader in the family Haematopodidae. It is endemic to New Zealand. The Maori name is torea-pango. They are also known as 'red bills'. Description "Variable" refers to the frontal plumage, which ranges from pied through mottled to all black. They are polymorphic meaning they have different genetic variants. These color differences are attributed to the latitude of the habitat, where the northernmost oystercatchers have significantly more white on their bodies than those of southern origin. All Stewart Island variable oystercatchers are black. They have pink legs, an orange eye ring and orange-red beaks. Similar to a needle in shape, the bill is thin and long, and darkens to a deep red color during the breeding season. Males are around 678 grams and females slightly larger at around 724 grams. Length of individuals range from 42 to 47 cm from beak to tail and have a short, sturdy body with a thick neck. Va ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Reef Egret
The Pacific reef heron (''Egretta sacra''), also known as the eastern reef heron or eastern reef egret, is a species of heron found throughout southern Asia and Oceania. It occurs in two colour morphs with either slaty grey or pure white plumage. The sexes are similar in appearance. Taxonomy The Pacific reef heron was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the herons, cranes and egrets in the genus '' Ardea'' and coined the binomial name ''Ardea sacra''. Gmelin based his description on the "Sacred heron" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume work ''A General Synopsis of Birds''. The naturalist Joseph Banks had provided Latham with a specimen of a white morph that had been collected on Tahiti. The Pacific reef heron is now placed with 12 other species in the genus ''Egretta'' that was introduce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand Dotterel
The New Zealand dotterel (''Charadrius obscurus'') is a species of shorebird found only in certain areas of New Zealand. It is also called the New Zealand plover or red-breasted dotterel, and its Māori names include , , and . The southern subspecies of the New Zealand plover is considered critically endangered and was nearing extinction Extinction is the termination of a kind of organism or of a group of kinds (taxon), usually a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and ... with about 75 individuals remaining in 1990. Conservation measures increased this to 250 by 2005, but a further decline has occurred since 2012 to an estimated 60–80 mature individuals in 2017. Taxonomy and systematics The New Zealand dotterel was Species description, formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Lin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fernbird
The New Zealand fernbird or simply fernbird (''Poodytes punctatus'') is an insectivorous bird endemic to New Zealand. In the Māori language, it is named or . Taxonomy The New Zealand fernbird was described by the French zoologists Jean Quoy and Joseph Gaimard in 1832 from a specimen collected in Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere, South Island, New Zealand. They coined the binomial name, ''Synallaxis punctata''. In the past, this species had the binomial name ''Megalurus punctatus.'' There are five subspecies present on different islands. They differ in extent of reddish-brown and intensity of streaking, as well as size: * ''P. p. vealeae'' (Kemp, R, 1912) – North Island (New Zealand) * ''P. p. punctatus'' (Quoy & Gaimard, 1832) – South Island (New Zealand) * ''P. p. stewartianus'' ( Oliver, 1930) – Stewart Island (New Zealand) * ''P. p. wilsoni'' ( Stead, 1936) – Codfish Island (=Whenua Hou, west of Stewart Island, New Zealand) * ''P. p. caudatus'' ( Buller, 1894) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spotless Crake
The spotless crake (''Zapornia tabuensis'') is a species of bird in the rail family, Rallidae. It is widely distributed species occurring from the Philippines, New Guinea and Australia, across the southern Pacific Ocean to the Marquesas Islands and south to New Zealand. Taxonomy The spotless crake was Species description, formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the other crakes and rails in the genus ''Rallus'' and coined the binomial nomenclature, binomial name ''Rallus tabuensis''. Gmelin's account is taken from that of the "Tabuan rail" that had been described in 1785 by the English ornithologist John Latham (ornithologist), John Latham in his book ''A General Synopsis of Birds''. Latham's description was probably based on a plate painted by the German naturalist Georg Forster who had accompanied the British explorer James Cook on his Second voyage o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Australasian Bittern
The Australasian bittern (''Botaurus poiciloptilus''), also known as the brown bittern or matuku hūrepo, and also nicknamed the "bunyip bird", is a large bird in the heron family Ardeidae. A secretive bird with a distinctive booming call, it is more often heard than seen. Australasian bitterns are endangered in both Australia and New Zealand. Taxonomy German zoologist Johann Georg Wagler described the Australasian bittern in 1827. It is one of four similarly-plumaged species in the genus ''Botaurus''. Description The length is from 650 to 750 mm with adults being similar between the sexes while the male is significantly larger. The bird has a deep brown upper surface, mauled with buff on wing coverts; face and eyebrow buff, with dark brown stripe running from bill to erectile plumes at sides of neck. Under surface buff, striped with brown. The face skin is a dull green as are the legs and feet, it possesses a dark brown bill, yellow eyes, and the base of the lower mandible is gr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand Flax
New Zealand flax describes the common New Zealand perennial plants ''Phormium tenax'' and ''Phormium colensoi'', known by the Māori names ''harakeke'' and ''wharariki'' respectively. Although given the common name 'flax' they are quite distinct from the Northern Hemisphere plant known as flax (''Linum usitatissimum''). ''P. tenax'' occurs naturally in New Zealand and Norfolk Island, while ''P. colensoi'' is endemic to New Zealand. They have played an important part in the cultural and economic history of New Zealand for both the Māori people and the later European settlers. Both species and their cultivars have now been widely distributed to temperate regions of the world as ornamental garden plants – and to lesser extent for fibre production. __TOC__ Traditional Māori uses Textiles Although the Māori made textiles from a number of other plants, including tī kōuka, tōī, pingao, kiekie, toetoe and the paper mulberry, the use of harakeke and wharariki was pred ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Karaka (tree)
Karaka or New Zealand laurel (''Corynocarpus laevigatus'') is an evergreen tree of the family Corynocarpaceae endemic to New Zealand. It is common throughout the North and South Islands to Banks Peninsula (43°45′S) and Okarito (43°20′S), on the Three Kings Islands, on Raoul Island in the Kermadecs, and on the Chatham Islands. It is widespread in coastal habitats, often forming a major component of coastal forest, though it rarely dominates. Most botanists consider it to be native only to the northern half of the North Island, having been planted elsewhere by Māori near former village sites, and subsequently spread by birds. The common name karaka comes from the Māori language, and is also the Māori term for the colour orange, from the colour of the fruit. In the Chatham Islands, it is called ''kōpī'', its name in the Moriori language. It is naturalised and considered invasive in Hawaii. Description Karaka is a leafy canopy tree with erect or spreading branches. It ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_(cropped).jpg "Click for more on -> Fernbird")
_(cropped).jpg "Click for more on -> Australasian Bittern")
