New Zealand Forests

 

Silver Fern (Alsophila tricolor).
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

New Zealand is a microcontinent in the South Pacific, 1500 miles east of Australia.  It has been isolated for 80 million years and during this vast expanse of time unique forest communities evolved.  The arrival of the Māori people in about 1000 AD and more significantly the arrival of Europeans in the 17^th century reduced the forest cover from about 80% to around 20%.  The remaining forests are fragments hemmed in by agricultural lands, cities and roads.  Although today's forests are but a shadow of the their ancestors, they teem with endemic species. 

Kauri (Agathis australis). 
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

Kauri forests once covered much of the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand but now are found only in a few reserves.  The keystone species of these forests is the Kauri (Agathis australis).  These gigantic trees can reach 150 feet in height and emerge above the canopy of the forest.  The trunks can have a diameter of up to 10 feet and can live for over 1000 years.  Kauris are conifers in the family Araucariaceae.  This ancient group of plants is mainly found in the southern hemisphere.  Kauri trees produce strong, straight-grained wood that can be used for home construction and ship building.  Europeans cut down much of the Kauri forests for timber.  

The bright green top of a Silver Fern frond..
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

The silver underside of a Silver Fern frond.
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

An unfurling frond of Silver Fern.
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand.  

Kauri forests are subtropical, and many other plants make their home there.  Silver Fern (Alsophila tricolor) is a tree fern that grows in the Kauri forest.  This giant fern reaches 30 feet in height and has 12-foot fronds that are green above and silver on the underside.  Silver Fern is a symbol of New Zealand appearing on Air New Zealand jets, the uniforms of the All Blacks, the national rugby team, and even on the graves of New Zealand soldiers killed in wartime.  

Rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum) leaves.
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

Rimu trunk.
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

Rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum) is another large tree of the Kauri forest.  This is another species that experienced intensive logging and its numbers are greatly reduced.  Rimu can grow 100 feet tall and has small, pointed leaves borne on drooping limbs.  Rimu is in the family Podocarpaceae, another southern hemisphere group of plants that will get a more extensive treatment below.  

Tank Lily (Astelia hastata).
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand. 

The trees of the Kauri forest support many epiphytes. One of the most impressive is the Tank Lily (Astelia hastata).  It has long, strap-like leaves and grows in large clumps high in the branches of trees. Tank Lily is not a true lily but is in the family Asteliaceae and are found in Australia, New Zealand and southern South America.  

Manuka (Leptospermum scoparium).
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand.

Along the edge of the Kauri forest we saw Manuka (Leptospermum scoparium) a small trees that plays an outsized role in New Zealand agriculture.  This member of the Myrtle family (Myrtaceae) produces pink or white flowers with a dark purple throat.  These lovely flowers provide the raw material for manuka honey.  Manuka honey is dark with a rich flavor and commands a premium price.  Besides being delicious, Manuka honey is effective in treating wounds and burns and is reputed to have other health benefits.  The Manuka tree grows throughout New Zealand and southeastern Australia.  

New Zealand Flax (Phorium tenax).
Tawharanui Regional Park, New Zealand.
Photo by Diane Coggin. 

Tui (Prosthemadera novaseelandiae).This Tui was collecting
nectar from New Zealand Flax. The bird also dusted its face
with pollen and will transfer it to other flowers.
Tawharanui Regional Park, New Zealand.  

Another plant that grows on forest edges and in many other habitats is New Zealand Flax (Phormium tenax).  This impressive plant has six-foot-long leaves that are strengthened with fibers. The Māori extracted these fibers from the leaves and used them to make textiles, ropes and sails for their canoes.  New Zealand Flax flowers range in color from yellow to red and the plant's nectar is a favorite food of the Tui (Prosthemadera novaseelandiae) an endemic bird of New Zealand. 

 

Kowhai (Sophora fulvida).
Parry Kauri Park, New Zealand.

Kowhai (Sophora fulvida) is a small tree of fields and forest edges. This member of the bean family (Fabaceae) is endemic to New Zealand and reaches about 9 feet in height.  Kowhai produces yellow flowers and these mature into bean-like pods.    

Kaka Beak (Clianthus puniceus) flowers.
These flowers resemble the beak of the Kaka below.
Te Anau Bird Sanctuary, New Zealand. 

Kaka (Nestor meridionalis). 
An endangered New Zealand Parrot.  
Tawharanui Regional Park, New Zealand. 

Another plant in the family Fabaceae from this area is the critically endangered Kaka Beak.  These plants get their odd name because their red flowers resemble the beak of the Kaka (Nestor meridionalis), an endemic parrot of New Zealand.  Two species of Kaka Beak, Clianthus maximus and Clianthus puniceus are native to the North Island of New Zealand.  Only a few hundred Kaka Beaks survive in the wild, but they are widely cultivated across the islands.  We saw Clianthus puniceus planted at the Te Anau Bird Sanctuary on the South Island. 

The understory of a Podocarp forest.
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Video of a Totora (Podocarpus totara).

Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Totara emerging from the forest canopy.
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Māori carving made from Totara.
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Podocarpus totara, Totara, is another conifer in the family Podocarpaceae and one of the dominant trees in the Pureora Forest Park.  These trees grow to over 130 feet in height and reach 12 feet in diameter. Totara wood is resistant to decay, and the Māori used the tree for home building, canoe making and wood carving.  The loss of one of the ancient trees is a tragedy in the forest.  They can live for a thousand years, so some of the Totaras we saw could have been alive when the Māori first arrived.  When a respected elder of the Māori community dies, they say, “A Totara has fallen in the forest”.  

Young Lancewood (Pseudopanax ferox).
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Mature Lancewood.
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Two common trees found growing in disturbed areas of the Podocarp forest are Toothed Lancewood (Pseudopanax ferox) and Cabbage Tree (Cordyline australis).  Toothed Lancewood grows at forest edge, understory and fields throughout New Zealand.  When young, the long, toothed, gray-green leaves point down.  After about 15 years, the Toothed Lancewood may reach 25 feet in height.  In the mature stage the leaves become wider, greener and extend straight out from the stem rather than pointing down.  

New Zealand Cabbage Tree (Cordyline australis).
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

New Zealand Cabbage Trees are a common sight all around New Zealand.  They resemble palm trees, but they are not cabbages or palms, they are in the Asparagus family, the Asparagaceae.  New Zealand Cabbage Trees have along straight trunks and long straight leaves.  This species plays an important role in forest restoration since it is one of the earliest plants in forest succession.   

Umbrella Moss (Canalohypopterygium tamariscinum).
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Mosses and ferns are abundant in the understory of the Podocarp forest.  One of the most impressive is the Umbrella Moss (Canalohypopterygium tamariscinum).  This distinctive moss is bright green and sends up a stalk topped by a flat tuft of small fronds that resemble an umbrella.  Hen and Chicken fern (Asplenium bulbiferum) is also an understory forest plant. It has long fronds and at the tips makes tiny plantlets.  These fall off and establish new plants that are clones of the parent.  

Hen and Chicken Fern (Asplenium bulbliferum)
Pureora Forest Park, New Zealand. 

Southern Beech (Nothofagus) grows on both the North and South Islands of New Zealand.  This genus is also found in Australia, New Guinea and South America.  In New Zealand the Southern Beech forests have not suffered the massive losses experienced by the Kauri and Podocarp forests because the beeches tend to grow in mountainous areas that were not cleared for agriculture.  Nothofagus predominates on the South Island where it grows in large tracts from sea level up to the tree line.   

A giant Mountain Beech (Nothophagus cliffortioides). 
This species is considered the Mother of the Forest.
Arthur's Pass National Park, New Zealand. 

Leaves of Mountain Beech.
Arthur's Pass National Park, New Zealand. 

Mountain Beech (Nothophagus cliffortioides) is one of the five endemic Southern Beech species in New Zealand. These evergreen trees can grow to 60 feet.  While Mountain Beech is not as tall nor do they live as long as Kauri or Podocarp, they have a majesty of their own.  Walking through the Nothophagus forest with its quiet understory covered by mosses and ferns feels like entering a cathedral.  

The understory of a Beech forest.
Arthur's Pass National Park, New Zealand. 

Red Mistletoe (Peraxilla tetrepetala) parasitizing 
Mountain Beech. 

Mountain Beech is the host for Red Mistletoe (Peraxilla tetrapetala) a New Zealand endemic parasitic plant.  Red Mistletoe is so named because it makes red flowers but they were not in season during our visit.  It has green leaves and can carry out photosynthesis, but the roots extend into the trunk of the beech and transfer water and inorganic nutrients from the Beech to the Red Mistletoe. 

Southern Ratta (Metrosideros umbellata). 
Stewart Island, New Zealand. 

Southern Ratta (Metrosideros umbellata) is a medium sized tree in the Myrtle family endemic to New Zealand.  It  is common in the Beech forests of the South Island and makes red flowers that supply nectar to numerous bees and birds.  Southern Ratta is another important source of nectar for making honey.   

Many of the native plants of New Zealand belong to groups that have an interesting geographic distribution.  These are found in southeastern Australia, New Zealand and southern South America. Relatives of Kauri, Podocarps and Southern Beech all have this distribution. The reason for this odd fact is these plants evolved on the ancient southern continent of Gondwana.  Gondwana separated into the current southern continents starting about 180 million years ago and drifting continental plates carried the plants with them to their current locations.  

The forests of New Zealand with their strange yet familiar plants and trees, were a revelation.  From the stunning Silver Ferns to the ancient Southern Beeches these forests and all their plants opened a new botanical world for us.  And a wonderful botanical world it is.  Endemic plants, endangered species, and a flora whose distribution reflects the movement of continents.  That's New Zealand.