Large native dragonfly

Wetlands support an immense variety of animals, some of which are very rare.

Indeed, most of New Zealand's wetland animals are not found anywhere else in the world. They include fernbirds, New Zealand dabchicks and scaup, shoveler, and paradise shelducks. Mudfish are also unique.

Animals that can only live in wetlands face an uncertain future through habitat loss and/or damage. Many, like the bittern and short-jawed kokopu, are now endangered. Conservation and restoration programmes provide the habitat these creatures need and ensure our wildlife survives into the future.

Spotless crake, marsh crake and bittern
These secretive birds feed in permanently shallow water under cover of dense raupo or flax. They build nests under sheltering sedges among stands of manuka.

Fernbird
Fernbirds prefer wetlands with dense ground cover under a selection of shrubs and small trees like manuka. Fernbird are rare in the Wellington region.

Pied stilt
Pied stilts feed on worms and insects in temporary winter pools in paddocks, and nest in scattered clumps of rushes.

Scaup
Scaup prefer deep, open and clear water.

Mallard, grey duck, shoveler and grey teal
These birds prefer shallow water around the edges of a pond or lake. They need open water to moult in safety, away from predators.

Dabchick
Dabchicks feed in deep, open water but build their nests on floating rafts of vegetation among reeds.

Tui, waxeye, bellbirds, and kereru
These birds visit wetlands at certain times to feed. Tui, waxeye and bellbird feed on harakeke (flax). Kereru (wood pigeons) visit wetlands to feed on kahikatea fruit.

	Banded kokopu

These fish also journey to and from the sea using a corridor of rivers, streams and drains.

This watery pathway must be kept intact if they are to complete their lifecycles successfully.

In contrast, the endangered brown mudfish spends all its life in wetlands or in drains or weed-filled creek beds. During dry spells it has an extraordinary ability to burrow deep into mud or under logs and hibernate for months at a time. This means it can occupy seasonal wetlands not accessible to other fish.

The juveniles of five of our native fish - banded, giant and short-jawed kokopu, inanga and koaro - are collectively known as 'whitebait'. Their eggs hatch in autumn and the larvae are washed out to sea. Six months later they make the hazardous return journey as juveniles. Most of the whitebait fishery catch is inanga.

Juvenile kokopu and koaro may migrate over 100 kilometres upstream, even climbing damp rocks beside steep waterfalls, until they reach sheltered streams and wetland habitats.

Although birds are the most visible component of wetlands, other animals like invertebrates (such as insects), amphibians and reptiles (lizards, etc) also live there. Typical wetlands can have hundreds of normally unseen insect species.

Photos: Crown Copyright (Department of Conservation)