The male five-month old takahē chick at ZEALANDIA, has been named. 

The chick has been given the name Te Āwhiorangi which means ‘the encircler of heaven’. It references a sacred pounamu adze (cutting tool) that is said to be used by the atua (god) Tāne to cut the sinews that bound Ranginui (the sky father) and Papatūānuku (the earth mother). 
 
The name has been agreed by ZEALANDIA, Taranaki Whānui te Upoko o te Ika and the Department of Conservation's Takahē Recovery Programme.

Student Volunteer Week, 1-7 April 2019, celebrates and recognises the contributions of young people taking their future into their own hands. 
 
The focus in 2019 is Kaitiakitanga, the guardianship of our environment. Student volunteers are instrumental to this guardianship and are at the forefront of advocating for environmental protection and carbon neutrality. 

We recently announced that our resident takahē, Nio and Orbell, have hatched a chick! 

ZEALANDIA's Lead Ranger Conservation, Ellen Irwin, has compiled some common Qs & As around how we're responding to this exciting arrival.

The October 2018 weasel incursion of ZEALANDIA garnered a lot of publicity and many questions. We've compiled answers to some of the most common ones that we received.

In te reo Māori, macrons are known as tohutō: tohu meaning a sign or a symbol, tō meaning to pull or heave: they are symbols that stretch.

Tohutō are essential in written reo Māori because their addition or omission can either change or remove meaning from a word. Despite this, tohutō are frequently omitted from text in newspapers, on road-signs and everything in between. Sometimes, the change in meaning can have disastrous results!

As we are probably all aware, nature is good for us, and science is backing this up. Recent ZEALANDIA intern, Lara Franco, looked at the scientific evidence for how nature can benefit us through each of our five senses. 

ZEALANDIA warmly welcomes Jo and Libby to their new roles on our board. Jo and Libby bring significant experience in conservation management and science.

Jo replaces long standing trustee Steve Thompson, and Libby takes up her appointment when Denise Church completes her six year term in December 2018.

New Zealand’s southernmost school is a shining example of the active role of education in conservation efforts. With a mere 32 students, Halfmoon Bay School (Oban - Rakiura/Stewart Island) certainly punches above its weight.

Kākāriki were introduced to ZEALANDIA in 2011, and since then have been thriving in the sanctuary. Residents of local Wellington suburbs, mainly Karori, now enjoy these birds in their backyards regularly. 

ZEALANDIA Conservation Ranger Ellen Irwin shares her tips for spotting these often elusive birds in this blog post.

Young animals face many challenges when they become independent from their parents. One problem is they need to find food, but have little experience to help them. Even human teenagers can struggle when there’s no one else around to do the shopping, and for wild animals, making the best foraging decisions is even more crucial for their survival. During my PhD I’m investigating how juvenile birds overcome this challenge.