August 4th, 2014 The Journey Home and Beyond

Our Iwi at the Rapaki Marae

Kia Ora.  Having been immersed in Kiwi and Maori culture for the past five weeks will now make the journey back to American culture another adventure.  Our students will take with them lasting memories of the challenges and opportunities of what not only New Zealand faces, but what the rest of the world faces as well.  Preserving biological diversity, conserving resources, and maintaining a balance between natural and human built environments are key to a sustainable future.  And, it will take all of us with our diverse backgrounds to come together in many different ways to help make lasting change for a bright future.

Dear students, we hope that what you have experienced with us in New Zealand will help shape the decisions you make for our future in exciting and positive ways.  We thank you for giving of yourselves openly with your hearts and minds so that our time together could be such a special learning opportunity for us all.  We have really enjoyed being with all of you, touring the wop-wops, and sharing a daily cuppa. Sweet As!

From the land of the long white cloud, safe and happy travels!  See you in the land of the flowers (La Florida).  With a Hongi and hug to each of you, Mark, Meryl, Jámm, and Tupelo

August 3, 2014 Documenting Good Memories

This day is a rite-of-passage of sorts. Student Journals from the past 5 weeks recounting both scientific information and personal responses to our experiences were due today, and we celebrated the course end with time together with folks who have helped us along the way and a slideshow (cramming as many photos as we could of over 3,750 photos into just 160 slides) of our good memories together.  We have done so much and have become whānau (family). The Squad is off for one more night together in Lincoln at The Grouse.  Thank you for all the fun! 

Sweet Dreams under clear and starry skies of Aotearoa, Meryl

July 31, 2014 Third Time's The Charm - Birdlings Flat

Kaitorete Spit along Lake Ellesmere

Another beautiful day with strong winds and warm temps. We started the day entering over 100 species of plants and animals that we have seen on Nature Watch NZ (see http://naturewatch.org.nz/ and look for UF Biodiversity course under projects). The students (or the squad) wanted to go back to Birdlings Flat and we also decided to take the 18 km trip along Kaitorete Spit is New Zealands second longest sand spit hosting several unique species of flora and fauna, including the only native spider with a poisonous bite, the Katipo (don't worry, they are very rare and we did not see any). 

Little did we know the adventure (especially for me) driving the Gatorwaka through quite a few paddocks with a gravel road and judder bars. I wanted to explore the spit (having never been there) and see were the salt water meets the fresh water of the lake. On y va! (french for here we go)

Gate keeping across paddocks.

Sooooooooooo cute!

First up was some marvelous up close views of ewes (sheep that is of the female kind) with their newly born lamb. Lots of ohhs and ahhhhs and their so cute from the squad. The road to the end of the spit was a mixture of pasture, natives (small shrubs, Muehlenbeckia astonii), and of course lots of beach with ROCKS to collect.

Ewww of a different kind.

Rocks, glorious rocks!

View out across the Pacific Ocean.

When we go to the opening where the ocean met the lake, we saw freshwater pouring out of Lake Ellesmere (Te Waihora). It looked green and full of silt. Lake Ellesmere is one of the most polluted lakes in New Zealand (see https://www.selwyn.govt.nz/facilities-and-parks/facilities/lake-ellesmere) and it used to be a big fishing area, particularly for flounder and eels caught by local Maori. However, wastewater runoff from farms (loaded with nitrates) has polluted the lake and there is an effort to improve the lakes water quality by changing farming practices upstream. See also http://www.wet.org.nz/  We had a close look at where all the nutrients go from the urban and rural  landscape. It even relates to back home where plenty of Floridians dump fertilizers on their lawns, and most of the fertilizers end of up our ground water and waterways. One can see our clean/clear springs changing right before our eyes!

We ended the day relaxing on Birdlings Flat (of course collecting more rocks). Watching gannets and other birds fishing and eating fish. 

Dr. H

Landowners, honeydew and a birthday!

Sadly, this is our last week in New Zealand. But, we are starting off the week right by visiting local landowners.

First, we traveled to Malcolm and Pauline's farm in Lincoln. They greeted us with tea and delicious chocolate muffins (no lie I had 3 muffins).

Malcolm and Pauline are retired farmers who moved from Sefton to Lincoln in 2006. The couple decided to grow a hedgerow around their farm because native plants require little maintenance and less money. People thought they were mad to do this, but the hedgerow and surrounding gardens have grown remarkably well since 2007.

Malcolm, Pauline and The Squad

Pauline explained how rich and fertile the soil is here which allows the plants to grow beautifully. When they first moved to Lincoln there were not many plants and no birds, but now there are many birds and native plants. Birds such as thrashers, starlings, black birds, bellbirds, white-faced herons, pukekos and silver-eyes. They even have bees, geckos and lizards!

Bird garden

Pauline and her garden

So far, there is a mixture of deciduous trees and native plants. Even though the deciduous trees aren't native they provide shelter from the wind and nutrients for the native plants. The hedgerows include kowhai, golden totara, hebe, broad leaf, flax, kahikatea and more. The hedgerow covers 750 meters around the farm and is 4 meters wide.

Hedgerow in Fall of 2007

Hedgerow now

Pauline and Malcolm are trying to get a covenant for the area to make sure no one can tear down all the native plants. It would be awful to see all their hard work to go to waste at the hands of a bulldozer.

Group photo with Pauline and Malcolm!

Before our next destination, we made a short stop in front of the Southern Alps for pictures. Fun fact: New Zealand is due for a magnitude 8 earthquake because of the Alp fault line.

The Southern Alps

On to our next stop! We passed through Springfield to get to Toby Hill farm. Heather and Trevor are the owners of this land. They have been farming since 1969 and decided to become involved in restoration. More than 6,000 native species were planted on their farm. They've blocked off 4 different parts of their farm for restoration.

Heather and Trevor began their native restoration project in Kowai Bush about 20 years ago. They are a part of the Green Dot Program and are working to bring more native plants to the Selwyn District. Trevor explained that after an ecological survey done by Kristena, an environmental officer, they were able to apply for funding by the council. Kristena identified over 52 native plants in the area. Heather and Trevor were given money for fences and more native plants.

Trevor explaining their conservation efforts

Volunteers from the Malvern Lions Club and Te Ara Kakariki have helped plant native species in the fenced off areas. There has been an overall 90% plant survival rate! Unfortunately, some plants are damaged by strong winds and snow.

Trevor and Heather are working for a QEII trust. This is a national conservation trust that provides landowners protection for the native feature on their land with covenants.

Trevor spoke about the many advantages of this restoration project. For example, in 50 years there will not be as many scattered trees. Additionally, there will be more natural regeneration. Trevor and Heather have noticed the increase in birds like wood pigeons, fantails, bellbirds and a few tui. We even saw a fantail (my favorite New Zealand bird)!

Fantail or piwakawaka showing off

Trevor and Heather gave us a tour of their awesome restoration blocks. Manuka, kanuka, marble leaf, pokaka, kowhai and more native plants are growing successfully.

Trevor telling us more about Toby Hill

Finding out that Honeydew is called weevil piss by beekeepers

One of the four restoration blocks

The fence surrounding the blocks keeps away the stock, but not all the small mammals. Therefore, Trevor and Heather installed some predator traps. The traps are meant for possums, but there isn't much evidence of possums. They believe rats are eating the bait rather than possums.

Trevor pointing out a trap

'Lake Kristena' in another restoration block

By the way, please visit their website here!

Group photo with Trevor and Heather!

We then made a quick stop at Lords Bush Scenic Reserve, which was recommended by our friend Colin Meurk.

Entrance to the reserve

We licked honeydew off trees and maneuvered around horse feces. I found out that the honeydew is actually insect poop. The insect, which secretes the sweet liquid, is inside the tree and feeds off the sap. Yum.

Braden licking off some honeydew

Katherine and Christina trying honeydew

Plant surrounded by cages to keep away rabbits

We had tea-time at Springfield Store & Cafe. We also celebrated Connor's birthday! Happy 21st Birthday Connor! Hope you feel better. 

Connor blowing out his candle

Until later,

Alicia

July 28, 2008 A walk in the garden, through history, in Christchurch, and at a quarry

Colin teaches us about the Avon River and Christchurch Botanical Gardens.

We began our day of walks in the Christchurch Botanical Gardens with Colin as our tour guide.  We enjoyed all the food for thought about past-laid plans and ongoing formulating future plans  for Christchurch and surrounds as we learned about the Avon river that runs through much of Christchurch and the Botanical Garden.  With the Earthquakes having changed the landscape, the Garden City need not continue with the traditional English lawns, but opt for its native identity or a combination of the two.  In the past, plans concerning the Avon only considered it landscaped with lawn.  Additional trees and plantings along its shores change the flood plain zones and will thus influence city planning.  We also learned that the gardens have, over the past few years, served as a place to visit as a safe haven of sorts for Christchurch residents who have survived through the earthquakes.

We got to explore the newly opened Visitor's Center at the gardens as well.

Walking through the Rose Garden.

Kakabeak in bloom in the native New Zealand Garden.

We further took to heart that, in general, botanical gardens highlight the native plants and offer plants from other parts of the world as a secondary enhancement.  At the Christchurch Botanical Gardens, the more traditional English garden brought by early settlers 150 years ago is featured first, with the native New Zealand plant garden off to the side. We toured both and we taken by the beauty of the formality of the English rose garden laying in wait to blossom in Spring and equally with the beauty of the texture of the native New Zealand plants and the early spring blooms of the kakabeak.  It was interesting to compare 100-years growth for non-native plants like the incredibly tall California Sequoia with the slower-growing, native plants and trees like the Kauri which can grow more than 160 feet tall. 

The Peacock Fountain with the Arts Center in the back ground on the right.

Dr. Hos and students checking out a Moa at the Canterbury Museum.

We lunched in the sun by the Peacock Fountain before walking in the Canterbury Museum. There we explored the Moa, Maori, Paua House, Old Christchurch street, Earthquake Photos, Antarctica, Bird and many more exhibits.

 

The Christchurch Trams are running again in Christchurch after being inactive since the Earthquakes. Restoration work continues on the Arts Center on the right.

Next we were off for a brief walk to view a little of the city were restoration efforts are taking place on the Arts Center and Art Gallery.

 

The Squad in the Sister City Korean Garden at Halswell Quarry.

After afternoon tea back at the Botanical Garden Visitor’s Center, we went for a short hike at Halswell Quarry where we saw where the stones for some of the beautiful building we saw during the day (Canterbury Museum and Arts Center) came from.

Another beautiful day! Hope everyone gets good rest after the action-packed weekend! – Meryl and Mark

Queenstown: The Adventure Captial of New Zealand

Kia Ora!
Queenstown was originally valued for its pounamu -- greenstone -- and moa and then its prosperity under the gold rush in the 1800s, but today it's one of the world's greatest destinations for ADVENTURE!

With so much to do and so little time the squad didn't waste a second. As soon as we arrived we went to Fergburger. Fergburger is basically the iconic burger joint of Queenstown and according to Erin and Alicia the burgers are "big, juicy, beautiful and a bit messy".

 

Alicia chowing down on her Fergburger.

Josh and Braden enjoying Milford Sound.

Erin's best day ever face.

The following day Josh, Braden, Alicia and Erin were all fortunate enough to visit the incredible Milford Sound. Erin explains their day perfectly. We took a bus ride through Fiordland National Park to Milford Sound, where we toured the area by boat. Fiordland National Park is New Zealand's largest national park, and is a magnificent 13,000 square kilometers of pure beauty. On the bus tour, we stopped alongside massive glaciers, drank from the crystal clear glacial rivers, and saw avalanche trails, snow-covered mountaintops, and reflective lakes. The bus trip to Milford Sound was absolutely spectacular, but nothing compared to the Sound itself. Dubbed the eighth wonder of the world by Rudyard Kipling, Milford Sound lives up to its reputation. We learned a lot while on the ship: that Milford Sound is falsely named because it is actually a glacially-created fjord, that it is the wettest inhabited area in New Zealand, that it is bordered by the Tasman Sea, and that it was often missed by early explorers because the opening is hard to spot from the ocean. But mostly, we learned that it is easily the most beautiful place we will ever see. It was a wonderful adventure!


Our next adventure was skiing and snowboarding. Katherine, Tory and Le'a took the evening to night ski at Cornet peak. While Josh and Braden skied The Remarkables the following day. Tory compared the runs to what you would expect out west in the USA, but much shorter. We enjoyed several runs down the mountain with a few sit-downs due to the ice patches. We couldn't help but notice that the lights on the mountain were all extremely bright and uncovered, shielding any view of the stars above us.

Katherine, Le'a and Tory taking on the slopes.

Now for the adrenaline junkies. The squad started our Saturday morning at AJ Hackett Bungy, where some of the squad took on the challenge of throwing ourselves off the Kawarau Bridge, 43 meters above the Kawarau River. The Kawarau Bridge is home to the world's first and most famous jumps. Overcome with nerves and excitement we each successfully completed the jump! You could say we are a little insane, but the feeling of falling, although frightening at first, was absolutely incredible. It literally takes your breath away! 

Braden, Tory, Christina, Katherine and Le'a happy to have completed the jump.

Our next adrenaline rush was skydiving that same afternoon. We embraced the fear of jumping out of a perfectly good aircraft at 12,000ft at 200kph and did tandem skydiving through NZONE Skydive. In 1990, NZONE Skydive was NZ's first tandem skydive operation and they are now celebrating 23 years of skydiving. So we were in good hands! Once we took the leap out of the aircraft door we experience 45 seconds of free fall. In those seconds we went through the clouds and essentially felt like we were flying. It was an unreal experience to say the least. Then once the canopy opened and we slowed down, we were able to see the dramatic scenery of NZ. Like a bird soaring high in the sky we got to experience the true beauty of the NZ landscape. The only way to describe that feeling is pure bliss. That moment we landed, overcome with happiness, was unimaginable. It was the best experience of my life!

Christina, Le'a, Tory and Katherine all ready to Skydive.

Then the squad packed up our stuff and boarded a bus back to Christchurch to end the best weekend EVER. The bus ride back was even beautiful as the day was clear and we were able to get a glimpse of Mt. Cook, an amazing site to see in NZ.

Beautiful view of Mt. Cook

We made it back to Lincoln and the Squad was finally reunited again. Over dinner we exchanged stories and got to hear about the relaxing weekend Connor and Sam had in Christchurch. Sam said the damage from the earthquakes is still readily apparent and, although the city has a great spirit of resilience, it's obvious that Christchurch isn't what it used to be. Despite that, Christchurch does have a certain charm and innovative ideas they've had to make the most of the post-earthquake devastation and rebuilding.They explored the Restart Mall, which is a shopping center built entirely from freight shipping containers for most of the morning. They had lunch at Dimitri's Greek Food for some delicious falafel pitas. Then spent the rest of the day with more exploring before heading back to Lincoln. 

Restart Mall in Christchurch

We can all say it was a weekend full of adventures and magical memories for a lifetime!
Cheers! Christina

Wednesday July 23, 2014 Kaikoura Adventures

Kia Ora!

The Squad hiking the Kaikoura Coast

The squad hopped out of bed this morning, ate breakfast at the Dusky Lodge, and headed out for a day of adventures. We started off by checking Whale Watch Kaikoura to see if the weather was clear enough for some of us to experience the sperm whales right off the coast. Unfortunately the waves were too rough and the tours were canceled.

However, we did still learn about whales in the reception area! One of our favorite things we discovered was about the giant sperm whale's buoyancy. Due to the large quantities of oil in their bodies, they can regulate it. By regulating the temperature of spermaceti in their heads, the sperm whale can alter it's buoyancy. When exposed to cold air on the surface, the oil cools and hardens forming a solid wax denser than the water that helps them descend. To melt the waxy film, the whale's capillaries pump blood which allows them to be less dense and ascend more easily.

We jumped back in the Gator Waka and drove to tea time at the Why Not Cafe. With some warm drinks in our bellies, we were ready for our hike around the Peninsula Seal Colony on the Kaikoura Coast. We started at Point Kean where we ran into many resting Kekeno (the Maori name for New Zealand Fur Seals meaning "looks around").

Fur seal "looking around"

Fun Fact: During the winter months there is a large increase of males at Point Kean. In the Spring/Summer (breeding season) the males travel to larger breeding colonies so there are less likely to be as many here. They are also less aggressive in the winter since they are not competing for mates.

Colony of fur seal at Kaikoura

Reading the information signs was really interesting. We learned that the only fur seal killers on land are humans and stray dogs. At sea they may be killed by sharks and orcas. Major threats to the sea puppies include synthetic packaging, looped lines, and pieces of discarded nets. They will occasionally swallow plastic bags, mistaking them for jellyfish. This can cause a slow painful death.

The squad then hiked up the trail around the coast to learn about the Titi (Hutton's Shearwater). These pelagic birds are endemic to the Kaikoura area. The Te Rae O Atiu area that sits in the bird's flight path to the mountains. There are strong sea breezes here which help the birds take flight. Most of the time these birds are at sea, however they come ashore to nest. The first thing we saw when walking up was a predator proof fence. It is part of a conservation effort by Hutton's Shearwater Charitable Trust. The fence was put up in 2008 due to the rats and stoats significantly reducing the number of nesting colonies found in the area. In order to establish colonies within the fence 2-month old chicks were taken from their mountain burrows before they would normally leave and placed in artificial burrows at this site. They were hand fed and biologists hoped the babies would imprint on the area and return to lay their own eggs. The project has been successful! The number of shearwaters has increased since then and they are continuing to breed at that site! Not only is this area important to the birds, but the birds are important to the land as well because they bring in a lot of nutrition from the sea to the mountains.

Erin enjoying the magnificent views

The site is actually on Maori land and the people are excited about being involved. This is because they traditionally eat them but cannot until the population is stronger in it's numbers.

We continued along the coast, seeing MANY more fur seals and even spotting a few dusky dolphins! After the hike, we stopped for lunch before hitting the road to Lincoln University. A long 3 hour drive put us back at campus just in time for dinner and a night of catching up on our class journals!

Squad Love

Cheers!
Sam and Katherine

July 20, 2014 - Otamahua

Our trip to the Rapaki Marae was a truly incredible experience, and the storytelling abilities of our wonderful hosts made it even more captivating and memorable. After the privilege of visiting such a magical place and hearing such colorful and beautiful Maori legends, I will try my best to deliver today’s stories with as much imagery and eloquence possible. It’s hard not to be inspired by the people in this country, especially after the experiences we’ve had.

Group picture in front of the Rapaki meetinghouse

The Squad began the day bright and early after spending the night under one roof in the main Rapaki meetinghouse. We ate a quick breakfast, grabbed hot mugs of tea and coffee to warm our hands and bodies, cleaned up after ourselves, and departed from the marae for the ferry to Quail Island.

Quail Island, also known as Otamahua by the Maori, has an interesting (and mildly creepy) history. It was first used in the nineteenth century as a quarantine island by European travelers, and then as a leper colony several years later. Now, the land is owned by the government, and the Department of Conservation runs the restoration project that we helped with today.

While the weather was not ideal (cold and rainy and cloudy, oh my!), that didn’t stop The Squad from hopping off the ferry to meet up with Ian McLennan, who was our leader for the day. Ian works with the Quail Island Ecological Restoration Trust, an organization with a goal to restore the native forests to the island. The work began in 1998 as part of a thesis project at the University of Canterbury, and has progressed immensely since then. Sixteen years and 80,000 plants later, the island is making a slow but steady recovery to its native and original beauty. Ian noted that he has already seen kererus and bellbirds nesting around the island, which is a great sign.

Because it is difficult for seeds to penetrate the pasture grass that covers a great portion of the island, all of the plants have to be grown in a nursery before being transplanted to their new homes. Planting takes place in August, once the coldest part of the winter is over, and the rest of the year is spent on maintenance work. Our trip to Quail Island reinforced something that we’ve heard from every expert we’ve had the opportunity to talk to thus far: restoration is much, much more than planting a tree and walking away. Projects are not days long or weeks long or months long. Restoration is a commitment of hundreds of years, because forests require hundreds of years to flourish.

Some of the beautiful flora on Quail Island

The Squad helped to move 300 tussock plants to a black tarp where they will rest until August, when they will be planted as part of the restoration project. It took some experimentation with assembly lines and figuring out how not to slip on the muddy terrain, but we were successful in our endeavors.

The crew gathered around the finished product

While Braden and Josh went off on their own to help with a new task, the rest of The Squad followed Ian to a hillside by the ocean, where we transplanted four silver tussock plants. We lovingly named them Travis, Trevor, Tom, and Thelma. We hope they enjoy their new homes!

Three busy bees transplanting Travis the silver tussock

Finishing up the transplants with Thelma!

We also found two trapdoor spiders, which we called Beatrice and Eugenie, and a massive worm, which we called Manfred.

We took a much-needed lunch break and then followed Dr. Hostetler on a tour of the rest of the island. The rain finally started to clear, and we were met with beautiful views of the ocean and mountains around us.

Our beautiful view

On the hike, we made a stop at a rocky area to search for skinks and geckos. We were lucky, and found a Canterbury gecko! These critters are important predators, so we were especially careful not to harm them in our search.

Me with the Canterbury gecko!

In other New Zealand fauna news, we saw several pied shags, coastal birds that reside primarily in the Australia and New Zealand area, resting on a cool shipwreck just off the hillside.

The shipwreck right off the shore

At the end of our hike, we visited a tiny, beautiful beach, where we were met by a massive rainbow. It was the picturesque ending to another wonderful day!

A beautiful ending

We stopped for a tea break at a tiny bar called Port Hole, and then made our way back to Lincoln. It was another successful, fun, and beautiful trip, as it always is in this incredible place. Tomorrow, we’re off on another adventure… fingers crossed it’s just as good as the last!

Wishing you well,

Erin Mags