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freshwater

Waitī – freshwater environments

Article

Waitī – freshwater environments

Waitī is a whetū in the Matariki cluster. It is the star connected to freshwater: springs, streams, rivers, lakes, wetlands ...

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Groundwater = saturated zone of soil/rock below the land surfac

Article

Groundwater and aquifers

Although we cannot see it, groundwater is a huge part of the water cycle. Aquifers in Aotearoa hold more water by volume than lakes and rivers! ...

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Lakes380 – a context for learning

Teacher PLD

Lakes380 – a context for learning

Lakes380 – Our lakes’ health: past, present, future is the largest scientific study ever undertaken on lakes in Aotearoa New ...

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Raupō plant (long slender leaves with seedheads) in the wild

Article

Could raupō help restore wetlands?

New research details the history of raupō from the time before people arrived in Aotearoa. It shows this resilient, opportunistic plant – and taonga species – ...

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Restoring Te Auaunga – Oakley Creek

Article

Restoring Te Auaunga – Oakley Creek

We rely on the natural world for recreation, building social connections and supporting our mental and spiritual health. Our land 2024 is an environmental report produced ...

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<i>Our freshwater 2023</i>

Article

Our freshwater 2023

Ki uta ki tai – from the mountains to the sea – acknowledges the journey that water makes from the atmosphere to the mountains and across ...

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Lakes380 – writers’ insight

Article

Lakes380 – writers’ insight

As content developers for a science education website, we always operate with the nature of science hovering in the background. The Science Learning Hub was a ...

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He reo nō te puehu – A voice from the dust

Article

He reo nō te puehu – A voice from the dust

How do you know what a roto (lake) looked like 1,200 years ago? The answer is in the puehu – the dust, silt and pollen that ...

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The lakes of Aotearoa New Zealand

Article

The lakes of Aotearoa New Zealand

Aotearoa has world-famous lakes – for example, Lakes Taupō, Rotorua and Wakatipu – but there are a huge number tucked away that most of us probably ...

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Lake sediment cores – exploring the past

Article

Lake sediment cores – exploring the past

Have you ever stood in a lake, wetland or estuary and wiggled your toes into the soft mud? No doubt you were thinking about the texture ...

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Environmental DNA

Article

Environmental DNA

All living things shed genetic material like hair, scales, skin and faeces into their local environment. This is known as environmental DNA (eDNA). For example, an ...

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Lakes380 – what does the data tell us?

Article

Lakes380 – what does the data tell us?

Lakes380 – Our lakes’ health: past, present, future is the largest scientific study ever undertaken on lakes in Aotearoa New Zealand. The programme, jointly led by ...

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Lakes380 – Our lakes’ health: past, present, future

Article

Lakes380 – Our lakes’ health: past, present, future

Aotearoa is fortunate to have abundant freshwater systems. The New Zealand Ministry for the Environment reports the country has: 70 major awa (river) systems that run ...

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Smart Water – a context for learning

Article

Smart Water – a context for learning

In Aotearoa New Zealand, water is our most precious resource, yet it is often taken for granted and perceived to be unlimited. Smart Water is a ...

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The fish highway

Article

The fish highway

This Connected article, written and illustrated by Adele Jackson, looks at the discovery that fish and eels are using Wellington’s stormwater system as access between streams ...

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Wetland animals

Article

Wetland animals

Wetland habitats are diverse places. They support an enormous range of animals from microscopic communities to some of Aotearoa New Zealand’s largest birds. Zooplankton are small ...

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Wetland plants

Article

Wetland plants

Wetlands are defined by the presence of water – places where water covers the soil or where it is present at or near the surface for ...

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Monitoring kōura

Article

Monitoring kōura

Kōura (freshwater crayfish, Paranephrops planifrons, P. zealandicus) are one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s original inhabitants. They have an ancient lineage that diverged from their Australian relatives ...

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Ruru and repo restoration

Article

Ruru and repo restoration

The ruru (morepork, Ninox novae-zelandiae) is not an animal we normally associate with repo – wetlands. We are more likely to hear their haunting calls coming ...

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Cultural indicators for repo

Article

Cultural indicators for repo

An indicator is something that can be measured or monitored. We use indicators to see changes or trends in things ranging from an individual bird species ...

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Wetland restoration

Article

Wetland restoration

Wetlands once occupied nearly 10% of Aotearoa New Zealand’s land cover. In the last 150 years, 90% of these wetlands have been drained or degraded. Fortunately, ...

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Wetlands

Article

Wetlands

Wetlands are ‘in between’ areas – they are permanently or intermittently wet areas on the margins of drier land or along the margins of water bodies ...

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Rivers and Us – introduction

Article

Rivers and Us – introduction

Rivers and Us is a Waikato Regional Council (WRC) initiative to help educators, students and the community to consider the state of water in their local ...

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Rivers and Us – a context for learning

Article

Rivers and Us – a context for learning

Rivers and Us is a Waikato Regional Council (WRC) initiative to help teachers, students and communities investigate the water in their local area. It explores how ...

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Urban solutions for water quality

Article

Urban solutions for water quality

Urban rivers are generally the most polluted waterways in New Zealand. These river catchments include built-up areas with lots of people and industries. The water flows ...

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Water quality monitoring

Article

Water quality monitoring

Maintaining good water quality is important for healthy ecosystems and healthy humans. There are several national, regional and local government agencies that look after water quality: ...

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