Explore related articles

Pūteketeke – it’s OK to laugh at Bird of the Century

After a heated contest, New Zealand’s Bird of the Century was named in November 2023 – the puking and pompadoured pūteketeke. The victory isn’t just for pūteketeke but also for conservation and ...

+ Create new collection

ARTICLE

Decline of birds and pollination

Birdlife has been declining in the New Zealand bush for many years, mainly due to introduced predators such as rats and stoats. Professor Dave Kelly and Jenny Ladley of the University of ...

+ Create new collection

ARTICLE

Rena bird recovery

Emma Sommerville had just arrived in the Bay of Plenty from Christchurch, after experiencing the Canterbury earthquake disaster, when the Rena ran aground. Having just completed her master’s ...

+ Create new collection

Explore related activities

ACTIVITY

Duck dominoes

New Zealand is home to a variety of ducks. Most of these are endemic, some have been introduced and a few have naturalised here. In this activity, students will use resource materials to help ...

+ Create new collection

ACTIVITY

Which duck is which?

New Zealand is home to a wide variety of water birds, including many species of ducks. Most of these are endemic, but some have been introduced and a few have naturalised here. Different native ...

+ Create new collection

ACTIVITY

Mixing and matching ducks

New Zealand is home to a wide variety of ducks. Different native duck species are adapted to particular habitats in New Zealand and have co-existed by taking advantage of different ecological ...

+ Create new collection

Explore related citizen science projects

CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

eBird

This comprehensive worldwide online citizen science (OCS) project collates bird species, numbers, locations and times of sightings into a large database. You can create a class as a user and, by ...

+ Create new collection

CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

New Zealand Garden Bird Survey

This New Zealand-based citizen science project aims to collect data about the types and numbers of common garden birds in our own backyard. This is done once annually during a particular window ...

+ Create new collection

CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECT

Kea Database

Taking part in this project helps scientists and conservationists know more about the habits of kea. Where are they? How far do they travel? Do they get around in groups? Logging sighting ...

+ Create new collection

Explore related PLD

TEACHER PLD

Bird conservation and literacy

In this online PD session recorded on 15 October 2015, primary school teacher Kim MacPherson talks about the Science Learning Hub’s resources – Conserving native birds – and how she used a ...

+ Create new collection

TEACHER PLD

Reading to learn about New Zealand birds and their ...

Active reading is an important activity for making meaning during the process of science inquiry (Osborne, 2010). The integration of science and literacy can enhance student learning in both ...

+ Create new collection

TEACHER PLD

Conserving native birds – unit plan

New Zealand is well known for its unique bird life. Our endemic birds evolved in an isolated, island environment. The arrival of people, the deliberate and accidental introduction of mammalian ...

+ Create new collection

Explore related videos

VIDEO

Bird conservation and literacy

Teachers using the Hub – Bird conservation and literacy professional Learning video. Note that this video shows footage from the legacy Science Learning Hub, however all the activities are still ...

+ Create new collection

VIDEO

The pollination problem

Many New Zealand birds have declined in numbers, so Dave Kelly and Jenny Ladley of University of Canterbury study the effect this has on native bird-pollinated plants. Dave explains the need to ...

+ Create new collection

VIDEO

Rhabdothamnus research

The Rhabdothamnus plant relies on bellbirds and stitchbirds for pollination. Dave Kelly of the University of Canterbury explains that, where these birds are absent, the plants are not surviving ...

+ Create new collection

Explore related interactives

SLIDESHOW

Methods of predator control – slideshow

This slideshow allows students to consider some of the pros and cons of various methods of predator control. Use the Slideshow menu for further options, including view full screen, and go here ...

+ Create new collection

SLIDESHOW

Diving into inquiry with whio – slideshow

This slideshow, from the webinar Making sense of data, provides additional support for the video tutorial. Use the Slideshow menu for further options, including view full screen, and go here for ...

+ Create new collection

SLIDESHOW

Why learn about whio? – slideshow

This slideshow, from the webinar Why learn about whio?, provides additional support for the video tutorial. Use the Slideshow menu for further options, including view full screen, and go here for ...

+ Create new collection