A 500-Year Project

New Zealand - the living ark

New Zealand has had the longest period of isolation of any oceanic island. For millions of years New Zealand was part of the supercontinent Gondwanaland, which included Australia, Africa and South America, sharing the same flora and fauna. About 140 million years ago, Gondwana began to break up through the process of continental drift, with India and then Africa separating off first. About 70 million years ago New Zealand became separated, earlier than Australia, South America and Antarctica. At this time dinosaurs were dominant, but primitive egg-laying mammals were present on Gondwana, and it is assumed that these would have been present on "New Zealand" at the time it separated. What happened to them is a mystery. About 65 million years ago dinosaurs became globally extinct and world-wide mammals gradually became dominant, except in New Zealand where there were no land mammals (only bats and seals) and birds became dominant. As New Zealand became more isolated, evolutionary processes resulted in a unique assemblage of plants and animals.

Tuatara

While the rest of the world entered the age of mammals, New Zealand took a unique evolutionary path and became a world dominated by birds. Without competition from browsing mammals, birds evolved to occupy niches that mammals occupied elsewhere. Threatened by few predators (no mammalian predators), many birds became flightless. New Zealand also has the most diverse lizard fauna in the temperate world, and a high degree of endemism in its plants.

However, in New Zealand, as in other similarly geographically isolated areas, human habitation and the spread of mammalian pests and invasive weeds has led to a dramatic bio-diversity crisis.

A safe haven

Takahe

The Karori Wildlife Sanctuary has an important potential role in protecting several of New Zealand's most endangered species (including the little spotted kiwi, saddleback and the tuatara), which survive only on protected offshore islands. The predator-proof fence provides a safe habitat for species that would otherwise not survive on the mainland. Research carried out at the Sanctuary into transfers of species such as saddleback will also help guide other transfers.

A Restoration Strategy has been developed for the Sanctuary that will bring back the sights and sounds of our natural heritage to Wellington. This strategy has been prepared in conjunction with New Zealand's top ecologists and scientists. Their support ensures our plans are based on sound science and are accepted in the wider conservation world.

The essence of our restoration strategy is its long-term nature. We may be able to assist nature and speed things up a little, but the final achievement of the ultimate vision is for generations beyond our own.