Friday, 2 August
1 pm, Waikato University, Room S.1.01
Pim de Monchy (BOPRC) is speaking on the Kaituna River Re-diversion and wetland creation project
Pim is a Senior Land Management Office with the Bay of Plenty Regional Council
He will detail the history of modifications to the lower Kaituna River and Maketu Estuary such as the 1956 Te Tumu diversion, the effects of those modifications, and what Bay of Plenty Regional Council is doing in response. Specifically, the Regional Council has allowed funding and provided a mandate to re-divert as much freshwater as possible back into Ongatoro/Maketu Estuary from the Kaituna River, and in the process to re-create wetlands.
Pim will present the project `preferred option´ and hopes to start a discussion with seminar attendees on the environmental effects of the proposal.
Check out this link for more information:www.boprc.govt.nz/kaitunamaketu
Monday August 5th
Waikato Botanical Society warmly invites you to a meeting at Waikato Environment Centre at 25 Ward Street from 5.30 - 7 pm.
For those able to stay on to continue the discussion we will go for a meal to a nearby restaurant afterwards
TOPIC
Avi Holzapfell talking about Dactylanthus taylorii - Biology, Conservation and Research.
Dactylanthus is New Zealand’s only native fully-parasitic flowering plant, growing underground as a perennial tuber attached to the root of native host trees and shrubs. Nectar-rich inflorescences break through the forest floor, where they are pollinated by a ground-foraging endemic bat.
Browsing of inflorescences by introduced mammals is limiting the species’ recruitment and has led to its disappearance over 96% of its pre-human distribution range.
This presentation will summarise our current understanding of the biology and ecology of dactylanthus, and the efforts taken to protect the species, including its inclusion in restoration projects. It will present recent research on the establishment of populations, and stunning new time-lapse images that confirm that dactylanthus should be regarded not as a rare oddity, but an ecosystem driver.
About Avi
Avi is manager of terrestrial ecosystem team here in Hamilton. Born in Germany, he first came across dactylanthus during a visit to Tongariro in 1998, and has been fascinated by the plant ever since. This initial encounter led him to become a botanist, initially completing a MSc in plant taxonomy at the Freie Universitaet Berlin, Germany, and then a PhD dactylanthus at Waikato University in 1999.
He has been working since 1999 for the Department of Conservation initially as an advisory scientist. His focus in recent years has been on threatened species management. He is a member (and past leader) of the dactylanthus recovery group (RG), previous leader of the native frog RG, science coordinator to the pateke RG, and current leader of the kiwi RG.
Do come and join us next Monday and learn about this amazing plant that is found here in the Waikato
Enquiries: Cynthia Roberts, email: croberts@doc.govt.nz; Ph 858 1034
