My Account
One of my favourite authors, and truly inspirational conservationist, Gerald Durrell, once said that one of the best things about being a naturalist is that you can indulge your hobby literally anywhere and you will never be bored.
Noticing the little things in nature is a perfect way to slow down, breathe and relax. In Māori culture, the phrase tīhei mauri ora, (literally ‘the sneeze of life’, stemming from when Tāne breathed life into the first woman, Hinahuone) is used to express the breath of life and can be used in calm breathing exercises. So I encourage you to take a breath, and open your eyes to something new this summer, here are a few places to start.
• At the beach: many of our Hibiscus Coast beaches are shared spaces between people and an abundance of wildlife. Well camouflaged, small shore birds like NZ dotterels are easy to miss, as they run along the tideline looking like clockwork models. Next time you see one, stop, sit and watch. Their behaviour is fascinating as they search for snacks amongst the washed up flotsam – this is why “tidying up” the beaches of seaweed isn’t a good idea.
• If like me you enjoy beachcombing in search of interesting shells, you might also see some of the more scarce animals, like the heart urchin, or sea potato. A relative of the more common sea urchin, or kina, the heart urchin spends most of its life under the sand, and all we see is the vivid white, brittle exoskeleton, or “test” displaying a stunning star-like design.
• In the garden: take a moment to carefully turn over a log or stone, and enter the world of the millipedes and pill bugs, or if you are lucky there might be a native skink hiding there. Very dependent on predator control, ornate and copper skinks can be found all over the Hibiscus Coast, but are easily mistaken for the very common rainbow or plague skink from Australia. Native skinks are generally much larger and stockier, with shorter toes, and in the case of the ornate skink, distinctive markings. If you get a close up photo, you will see that rainbow skinks have one large scale on the top of their heads, whereas in native skinks this is divided into two.
• In the park: find a quiet spot first thing in the morning, or late evening in one of our many awesome local parks and listen to the birdlife. One of the most distinctive is the grey warbler, or riroriro. More often heard than seen, and only found in New Zealand, its distinctive call (hear it on NZ Birds Online) rings out clearly to the keen listener. Keep watching and you might see this diminutive grey bird with red eyes slitting through the bushes unable to keep still. Right now, some riroriro find themselves rather busy as they feed an unexpected fledgling. The shining cuckoo, which overwinters in New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, is a “brood parasite” that lays its eggs in grey warbler nests and leaves their much larger offspring to be raised by the little parents. Keen to identify and learn about what you see? I recommend downloading the iNaturalist app, which uses your photos and location to make suggestions about what you have seen, and experts on the forum verify, or identify them for you very quickly. There is a Pest Free Hibiscus Coast Project site you can join on the iNaturalist app as well, which shows you what others are seeing in the area.
New Year’s resolutions for nature
Many people like to see a new year as a fresh start, a time to start new activities and refresh their lives. Unfortunately our native species can’t resolve to change their lives, but here are five things you can do to help them in 2024:
• Remove rats: don’t assume someone else will do this. The scale of the problem with pest animals is such that is takes all of us to solve it, so get and set a trap or bait station regularly and join Pest Free Hibiscus Coast. If you make any change this year make it this one. All it requires is to set reminders and keep going until it becomes a habit – set your trap when you put out your bin for example. In addition, Forest & Bird volunteers remove thousands of rats each year or parks in partnership with Auckland Council, and you are warmly invited to join them. • Provide fresh water: it’s hot out there, and birds enjoy a refreshing drink or cool bath just as much as we do, so make or buy a bird bath and fill it with fresh water daily. Don’t add sugar in summer as birds don’t need it, and the water can evaporate leaving a sticky mess that can be damaging to bees. • Take four for the shore! Next time you go to the beach, make sure you have something with you to put litter into, or find the nearest bin. In addition, consider taking four items of other rubbish with you. If everyone did this it would make such a difference, especially discarded fishing line which sea and shore birds can so easily get tangled in. Ninety percent of New Zealand’s sea bird species are in trouble, and most are found nowhere else in the world, so let’s help reduce plastic in our oceans. • Get rid of weeds: I’m not talking about dandelions here, there are ecological weeds that cause a real threat to the native bush all around us, and they spread from our gardens. Keep your eyes open for the strangling moth plant, the smothering climbing asparagus or the noxious woolly nightshade. Check out the Forest & Bird Weed Guide, or contact Restore Hibiscus & Bays for advice. Swap them out for lovely native plants with abundant nectar. • Be a conscious pet owner: can you confidently say your pet is having no negative impact on the environment? If you can’t, there is plenty of information out there to help you make a change, or if considering getting a pet for the first time, think carefully about your choice, for the sake of your pet and native creatures alike.
