What is it? HPAI A(H5N1) is an avian, highly infectious, respiratory disease. It can lead to death by pneumonia (inflammation of the air sacs in one or both lungs) and encephalitis (inflammation of the brain). What species have been affected? How is it spread? HPAI A(H5N1) is spread via migrating birds. It is spread locally …
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI): A(H5N1). What you need to know… Read More »
Meet Harry… A New Zealand fur seal/kekeno juvenile. He is a local of Dunedin/Ōtepoti, a fur-iendly face on the Clearwater Wildlife Tours, and Harry Styles is his namesake. While their similarities include both being showmen, photogenic, and having doe eyes; I’m not suggesting that Harry Styles is cuter than Harry the fur seal. Fur seals are endemic …
Between 2012 – 2022, there has been a steady increase in youth aged 15 – 24 and adults being diagnosed with depression in Aotearoa New Zealand. In 2022/23, 565 individuals died by suicide. It’s time to share and to listen. Outwardly, I’ve learned to mask it, and internalise my struggles and sadness. Inwardly, my mind …
Standing on the crest of a hill, bathed in golden rays, a yellow-eyed penguin searched for their mate, and called – loudly. Hence their te reo Māori name ‘Hoiho’, which means ‘noise shouter’. Yellow-eyed penguins are endemic to New Zealand, and are considered to be the rarest penguin in the world, with a total of …
Like humans, New Zealand sea lion/pakake individuals exhibit different personalities and behavioural traits. Some sea lion individuals are more curious and energetic (typical among juveniles), while others are more placid and nonchalant (typical among mature adults). When out doing sea lion monitoring, I see some individuals often, because they have favourite hang out spots. This …
Just Stop Oil is an organisation that has been demanding the UK government create an international, legally binding treaty to end the extraction and burning of oil and coal by 2030. In November 2022, Just Stop Oil co-founder Roger Hallam, Daniel Shaw, Louise Lancaster, Lucia Whittaker De Abreu, and Cressida Gethin agreed to cause disruption to traffic by …
Were it not for the courage of activists who raised their heads above the parapet to demand change, the below would not have happened. Abolishment of Slavery: On the 1st of January 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. It states that “all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, …
Kea (Nestor notabilis) are an endemic, large parrot from the family Nestoridae; and they reside in the Southern Alps of Aotearoa New Zealand. They are classified as ‘Endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, with a population of approximately 4,000. They have beautiful olive-green plumage, with underwings that are orange-red with black and yellow strips. They can weigh …
Shane Jones, the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries of New Zealand, has arguably been making some very serious and reckless decisions and putting the health of Aotearoa’s environment and ultimately its people at risk. We cannot eat money. There is no alternative, or taking shortcuts to conserving our one Earth/Papatūānuku – so the oceans and …
Friends and whānau in Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau, save the date: Saturday 8th June, 1.00pm. The time has come to stand up, come together as a community, and March for Nature! Greenpeace Aotearoa have organised a peaceful protest starting from Aotea Square in Auckland CBD against the Fast-Tracks Approval Bill. Why care about the Fast-Tracks Approval Bill? …