Read these books to celebrate World Wetland Day on 2 February. New Zealand has wetlands across the country, attracting unique wildlife and birds to the habitat. Wetlands are important for filtering waters and reducing floods, as well as returning nitrogen to the atmosphere. They are also stunning environments and harbour beautiful and rare flora and fauna.
Wetlands of New Zealand / Hunt, Janet
“Wetlands are the unheralded gems of New Zealand landscape. They harbour beautiful and rare flora and fauna: plants, aquatic life, birds and animals. Examining the different kinds of wetlands – peatlands, wetlands for waders, coastal wetlands, urban wetlands, upland, geothermal wetlands and rivers – also internationally renowned wetlands: Firth of Thames, Kopuatai Peat Dome, Whangamarino, Farewell Spit, Waituna Lagoon, and the Manawatu estuary.” (Adapted from the Catalogue)
New Zealand wetland birds and their world / Moon, Geoff
“Geoff Moon presents all the major types of freshwater wetland found in the country. It features birds that use New Zealand’s wetlands on a permanent or seasonal basis. A lifetime’s worth of fabulous bird photography is accompanied by lucid text, all collected from more than 60 years’ experience. Some of the country’s most elusive birds are found in wetlands; most of the photographs of the fernbird, bittern and dabchick that feature in this book are not only previously unpublished.” (Adapted from the Catalogue)
Swamp fever : a Golden Bay memoir / Hindmarsh, Gerard
“Swamp Fever is the fascinating tale of Golden Bay, northwest of Nelson. Following the homesteading movement in the 70s, Gerard Hindmarsh quit his job as a cartographic cadet for the Department of Lands and Survey and bought a block of scrub-covered, swampy land at Tukurua near Collingwood. Much of his land was swamp, initially ear-marked for draining till he discovered its vibrant ecology: the bird, fish and plants, which becomes a metaphor to Gerard’s growing connection with the land. “(Adapted from the Catalogue)
Fen, bog & swamp : a short history of peatland destruction and its role in the climate crisis / Proulx, Annie
“Annie Proulx, environmentalist brings her wide-ranging research and scholarship to wetlands and the role they play in preserving the environment–by storing the carbon emissions that greatly contribute to climate change. Fens, bogs, swamps, and marine estuaries are the earth’s most desirable and dependable resources. Author takes us on a journey world famous swamp such Amazon rainforest disease spawned in the wetlands. ” (Adapted from the Catalogue)
The nature of things : poems from the New Zealand landscape
“The Nature of Things is a celebration of the relationship between poetry and the New Zealand landscape. It matches a wide range of poems, that in some way evoke or describe our landscape, with images from the pre-eminent New Zealand photographer Craig Potton. The poems have been selected by one of New Zealand’s leading poets James Brown. Landscape featured lake, mountain, tree, estuaries and more.” (Adapted from the Catalogue)
New Zealand on foot / Dwyer, Denis
“Seeing the country afresh on foot, 73-year old Denis Dwyer embarks on a series of day-walks, and narrates his experiences, and provides detail about each track/walkway. In humorous, good-natured style, he travels through countryside, towns, cities and islands. He covers a vast array of landscapes: from kauri forests, to volcanoes, parks and streets, old battle sites, wetlands and gardens, native flora, springs and streams, boardwalks, a crater rim, the floor of a volcano, and mountains.” (Adapted from the Catalogue)
Up the river : explore and discover New Zealand’s rivers, lakes & wetlands / Candler, Gillian
“Explore the creeks, rivers, lakes and wetlands of New Zealand & discover the animals and plants that live in freshwater habitats. Learn about the amazing journeys of eels and whitebait, secretive birds, and tiny insects that live under water.” (Catalogue)
