When humans arrived in New Zealand, a bit over 700 years ago (Wilmshurst et al., 2008; Jacomb et al., 2014), it seems some of the driest parts of the country, in Central Otago, were under low forest, dominated by kowhai (Pole, 2022). Specifically, this was on the lower slopes of the gorges and slopes of… Continue reading Was there a Forest before Central Otago’s Kowhai Forest?
Tag: Central Otago
Tuataras in Central Otago
Bleached moa bones projected out from the steep bank of the nearly dry gully. This was exciting, as there were clearly several bones, and perhaps an entire skeleton waited to be uncovered. However, the layer of bones was under more than a meter of schist gravel and sand. That would require some serious digging, and… Continue reading Tuataras in Central Otago
What’s Happening to New Zealand’s Haast Pass?
It was next morning that I heard the bridge had washed away. I had hammered over it during the night – back in the 90s – a time when you could do a tad over the speed limit on country roads, with reasonable confidence nobody in uniform was waiting somewhere in the murk. On that… Continue reading What’s Happening to New Zealand’s Haast Pass?
The Amazing Miocene Fossil Leaf Pack of Mata Creek, New Zealand
I was crouched in a long boat somewhere up a rainforest-swathed river in Kalimatan, Borneo, when I saw it – a ‘living’ example of a fossil leaf pack I had once seen in New Zealand. Several years before, I had been exploring down a little stream near St Bathans, New Zealand. I was looking for… Continue reading The Amazing Miocene Fossil Leaf Pack of Mata Creek, New Zealand
Miocene Rain and Fire Forests of Bannockburn
Canungra is the perfect place to stop for a snack on the drive up to O’Reilly’s/Lamington National Park in southeastern Queensland. On a weekend you can grab a latte and pie and sit outside a cafe, watching the biker crowd doing pretty much the same thing. From there you start winding your way up the… Continue reading Miocene Rain and Fire Forests of Bannockburn
Cheap Eats Nanjing 23 – Curry at Miss Tasha
I noticed Miss Tasha when it opened. But for quite a while I kept walking past – I wasn’t sure what it was. It was set back a little off Chenxiang Road, and had a push-bike, tastefully positioned in the front. But was it a craft shop, or a cafe? My usual rule called for… Continue reading Cheap Eats Nanjing 23 – Curry at Miss Tasha
Miocene Swamp Forests of St Bathans, New Zealand
The white sands and muds surrounding Blue and ‘Grey’ Lakes at St Bathans were laid down in a braided river (Manuherikia Group; Douglas 1986). About twenty million years ago, in the Miocene period, It was flowing from the New Zealand hinterland in the west to the east coast. Braided rivers are constantly changing their channels,… Continue reading Miocene Swamp Forests of St Bathans, New Zealand
Miocene Nothofagus in New Zealand’s Manuherikia Group
Perhaps the most surprising thing about Nothofagus leaf fossils in New Zealand is – not finding them. Nothofagus is another name for the southern beech trees that form forests in New Zealand, as well as Australia, Patagonia, New Caledonia and New Guinea. As a group, the beeches are certainly an old element in New Zealand, with at least… Continue reading Miocene Nothofagus in New Zealand’s Manuherikia Group
Interdistributary drifters – a Miocene bay in New Zealand
One of the more evocative Miocene fossils you might pick up near Bannockburn, New Zealand, are she-oak ‘cones’ (see the featured image). The Latin name is Casuarina (but see ‘Technical Details’, below). This is a plant that no-longer grows naturally in New Zealand, but is a tree in much of Australia. It’s cones, and sometimes its brush-like foliage,… Continue reading Interdistributary drifters – a Miocene bay in New Zealand
Blue Lake, St Bathans – the most biodiverse Miocene fossil plant locality
The biodiversity of Blue Lake, at St Bathans, New Zealand, is precisely zero. It is an artificial lake partly filling a hole blasted out in the search for gold in the 19th century. The hole is directly in front of one of St Bathan’s and New Zealand’s gems – the Vulcan Hotel. If you ran out… Continue reading Blue Lake, St Bathans – the most biodiverse Miocene fossil plant locality