Site Visits

5. Auckland Zoo

The field trip objective is to investigate the status of various native NZ species and to consider the potential impact of civil activities in their natural habitat.

Auckland Zoo is a 16.35-hectare zoological garden in Auckland, New Zealand, situated next to Western Springs park not far from Auckland's central business district. It is run by the Auckland Council with the Zoological Society of Auckland as a supporting organisation. The zoo hosts 1400 animals representing 138 different species. New Zealand has many unique native fish, insects, birds, lizards and frogs, however our only native mammals are bats and marine mammals (DoC, n.d).

You are here to enjoy the experience and investigate the diversity of endemic species in NZ, however the information you gather today will be used to complete assignment 1 (Assessment of Environmental Effects Project).  You will need to gather knowledge and photos to supplement your AEE project and to raise awareness of the impacts of civil activities on our native species.

Your objectives are to:

·       Investigate mammals, birds, insects and lizards that are native to NZ and located at the zoo. 

·       Describe and photograph the species and establish its biological name,

·       Describe its habitat and food choices.

·       Establish its current species vulnerability (you may need to look further on the IUCN Red list for this information or ask a Zoo staff member)

Use this information to create an individual output – this is not a group assignment. You can use word, powerpoint or another program and the output can be in the form of a table, diagram or description. However please ensure that you include photographs of the species that you find. This output should be incorporated into Assignment 1 which is worth 20% of your final course total.