Picture a group of Islands surrounded by sea with no people, no land mammals(except bats), no snakes , and huge numbers of plants, birds, insects and reptiles. This was what New Zealand was like until around 1000 years ago when the first people arrived. A land of forests where the ancient plants and animals lived together in a natural balance, free from outside disturbance. Imagine what it would be like if New Zealand was invaded by by aliens from another planet. This is what it must have been like for the animals and plants living here when humans first set foot on the land.
New Zealand's birds were unprepared to defend themselves or their nests from hunters, rats and dogs and by the time the Europeans arrived 800 years later all species of Moa and several other birds were extinct, including a giant eagle and a number of native ducks, swans and geese.
The European settlers cleared forests and drained swamps to get
timber and create pasture. Many native plants and animals were destroyed as the
forests and swamplands disappeared. 
But the greatest impact on New Zealand's native animals
and plants came from introduced mammals.Goats, possums, rabbits, hares and deer set loose
deliberately for fur, meat and hides or sport, competed for the same food that many birds
needed to survive. With no natural predators except humans to keep them in check
they flourished far too well. To help control the huge numbers of rabbits and hares
the Europeans introduced stoats and weasels and ferrets. Along with rats and mice,
brought in accidentally on ships, and wild cats and dogs, these predators had
a severe effect on New Zealand's wildlife. More birds became
extinct. others were pushed to their limits of survival as their eggs
and chicks were eaten. Many native insects, frogs and reptiles were eaten too.
This sets the stage for present day . New Zealand now has as many
threatened species as the whole USA
(over 600).
Northland is a very green place with some of the finest Subtropical forest communities on the planet.. The character of Northland, a region where the leafy vaults of the surviving kauri forests (agathis australis) contain the original sorcery of the ancient wilderness.
Northland has a very rugged landscape. . There are few plains except along rivers and there are multitudes of rocky hills, although modest and seldom rising above 700m.
The mangrove grips Northland's tidal estuaries. The no less majestic Pohutakawa (metrociderous excelcus) tree clings to seaside cliffs, rooted deep in stony fissures.
Offshore islands
shimmer in
the light of dawn and are also often sanctuaries for forms of life from an older wilder
New Zealand. Undersea reefs and caves flutter with vividly coloured fish
riding a warm current down from the tropics. The Poor
Knights ,is one such island group. Marine life is luxuriant and
abundant. After much debate the Poor Knights became New Zealand's second
marine reserve however not until October 1998 did they gain full protection .
Within this website is work written by past and present students, many of whom have gone on with further valuable ecological work or study, but is also intended to provide access to environmental issues within Northland. There are valuable snippets of information also about unique species that live within Northland's many ecosystems. For students and people doing research there are valuable links for ease of navigation around the web.