Meeting a kiwi on the streets of Auckland
Kia ora!
The national symbol of New Zealand is the silver fern and you will soon understand why. Today I had the chance to go to a sub-tropical rainforest, which has been a dream of mine. In New Zealand, there are temperate and sub-tropical rainforests. The kiwi lives in a sub-tropical rainforest. It is difficult to see the kiwi for a few reasons. One, it is endangered; two, it is very shy; and three, it is a nocturnal bird. Sad to say, the only kiwi I saw today was a giant one on the streets of Auckland!
The rainforest was amazing. The tallest trees in Waipoua rainforest are the kauri trees which are related to the redwoods in the US. At one time, kauri trees covered 80% of North Island in NZ. Now kauri trees are only found on 5% of the land. We went to see the tallest kauri tree in New Zealand called Tane-mahuta. It is estimated to be 2,000 years old. Lower in the forest you can find tree ferns and silver ferns that give New Zealand its national symbol. Even though it had not rained prior to or during our visit, there was water dripping down from all of the branches. We could hear birds call, but had trouble locating them with all the growth. Our Maori bus driver, George, sang a love song in Maori at the base of Tane-mahuta so we could hear the echo of the forest and be reminded of the significance of the land for Maori people.
We also went to the Kauri museum where we learned all about kauri gum. The gum of the tree has had many uses: varnish, sealer, dental work, and cooking fuel - to name a few. The most-well known use is to turn it into a type of stone that is reminiscent of amber, but much lighter.
Tomorrow we head south – into the cold – but I don’t mind! Watch out Sheepworld, here I come! :+)
