For the first time in history, New Zealand has announced an ambitious initiative to eliminate rats, stoats, and possums from the country by 2050, in an effort to rid the country of an ecological scourge ravaging its native wildlife. “New Zealand’s unique native creatures and plants are central to our national identity,” said New Zealand […]
Tag: new zealand
Rare New Zealand birds killed accidentally as cull goes wrong
In a tragic case of mistaken identity, four critically endangered takahē birds have been accidentally killed in New Zealand after hunters misidentified the animals as a more common species. The mixup occurred at a sanctuary on Motutapu Island, where volunteers from the Deerstalkers Association, a national body representing hunters, were participating in a regulated cull […]
What Animals Are Likely to Go Extinct First Due to Climate Change
One in six species could disappear as the climate warms over the next century, with animals and plants in South America particularly hard hit while those in North America would face the lowest risk, according to a major new analysis published Thursday. With naturally small populations of native species in its tropical rainforests and mountains, […]
Conservationists turn tiny New Zealand island into bold wildlife experiment
Rotoroa Island, off the coast of New Zealand is tiny, at just 82 hectares (200 acres), but don’t let its diminutiveness fool you: big things are happening here. Over the past few years the island has become the site of a quiet, but grand, conservation experiment. What would happen if you populated an island with […]
High as a Hihi: Rare New Zealand Birds Trip Out on Unknown Fungus
How does a hihi get high? It feasts on a forbidden, mind-altering fungus, that’s how. The hihi, in case you don’t know, is a small, quirky bird native to New Zealand that usually likes to dine on fruits, nectar and the occasional insect. But a group of the rare birds at a wildlife sanctuary in […]
A “Death Sentence” For the Tiniest Dolphins in the World
At just 1.2 to 1.4 meters long and about 110 pounds, Maui’s dolphin is the smallest in the world. It is also found only on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island — and it is critically endangered. A 2012 survey commissioned by the New Zealand government’s Department of Conservation found that there were only […]
World’s largest rat extermination returns South Georgia to its bird life
A team on South Georgia has successfully completed the world’s largest rodent eradication in an effort to rid the British territory of millions of rats and mice. Against the backdrop of an approaching Antarctic winter between February and May, three helicopters encountered perilous flying conditions while peppering the southern Atlantic island with 183 tonnes of […]
Tasmania hopes foreign zoo breeding program will help save devils
About 20 Tasmanian devils will be sent to overseas zoos in an ambitious escalation of the battle against a deadly facial tumour disease that has ravaged the marsupials. The Tasmanian government has launched a pilot project that will see up to three zoos in New Zealand and two in the US take about 20 devils […]
