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Wild
Choose a Kingdom below to browse the collection
What is "Wild"
Wild is a collection of verified observations of plants, animals and fungus in our Karamea area. Wild is intended as a learning tool to aid anyone interested in the identification of species in the Karamea area. The collection was started in July 2021.
The collection includes species sighted from Kahurangi Point to Mōkihinui, and by no means is comprehensive, and does not seek to replace official sources of information. Where possible we provide links to detailed information about items in the collection.
Think of Wild as a blog, a personal journey of learning and discovery by the observers here. Each species or group in the collection represents many hours of searching, agonising over identification, learning, making mistakes, unlearning assumptions and asking lots and lots of questions! There is a great pleasure to be had crawling around in the forest, wondering about some little moss or fungus or some such. Who are you? What is your story? What about your family? Where do you come from? Asking these simple questions can lead down unexpected pathways and gradually exposes pieces of the astonishing ecological story of New Zealand. There is just so much hidden is these little worlds and there are so many little worlds.
Learning does not come easily, or cheaply, and requires work and participation. Learning is often not possible without great mentors and great feedback. To this end, for the keen student of observation the communities at iNaturalist NZ, FUNNZ, NZPCN, NZflora and Nelson Botanical Society can be your invaluable friend.
How do I participate to expand the collection
- You will need an iNaturalist NZ account and load observations on iNaturalist NZ. iNaturalist NZ is fundamentally one of the most effective ways to really learn your stuff.
- Contact us about joining the community.
- If you would like to follow what's going on, sign in or get an account and make sure you are subscribed to "Wild" on the notifications tab at My Account.
What is the extent of the collection?
- This was started in July 2021. If you have a particular interest and would like to add stuff, join in!
- Many hundreds of species are present in and around Karamea, however a great number cannot be simply identified from a photo. For example, many, if not most fungus cannot be identified as a species without DNA work. Even then, many hundreds or even thousands of fungi will not conform to the general notion of a "species".
- The collection includes a single iNaturalist NZ verified* observation for each item and these are included with the consent of the observers. Photographs are licensed as CC By-NC, are free to share, but are not to be used for commercial purposes.
- The collection is continuously expanded with the cooperation of our community of local observers. The more people that participate, the more robust the collection becomes.
- For comprehensive information about various species, see the resources listed under Wild learning tools below.
*verified: not iron clad, but a very good chance it's right!
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Wild learning tools
Karamea sits on the edge of Kahurangi National Park. We have at our door a huge opportunity to learn and share about the unique natural world in this part of New Zealand.
If you would like to dig in to learn about the wild environment around us, here are some great community learning resources:
Nelson Botanical Society
Top of the South native plant group
Do you want to know more about native plants of the top of the South Island and beyond? Nelson Botanical Society welcomes anyone with an interest in our beautiful and fascinating indigenous plants and fungi –– from complete beginners to those with knowledge to share.
Our members include expert botanists and other enthusiasts who are generous with their knowledge and can help you learn how to identify native plants. Botanical Society field trips and camps are wonderful opportunities to explore the region and learn about…
nzflora
nzflora
This is another invaluable resource, highly recommended. Detailed monographs and descriptions are presented for most NZ flora.
If you want to learn about New Zealand's beautiful ferns, this is the place to start.
New Zealand Plant Conservation Network
NZPCN
This is a invaluable resource, highly recommended. Detailed monographs and descriptions are presented for most NZ flora.
iNaturalist NZ
This is seriously cool. Don't have a personal expert to guide you in the field? Even if you have, it would be hard to find a better learning tool for the wild life around your home. Whatever you're in to; plants, birds, fungi, insects etc., you will find a very keen and supportive community on Inaturalist NZ.
iNaturalist NZ is a serious Citizen Science project. Professional scientists and researchers use iNaturalist NZ data. Get a free iNaturalist NZ account, start taking photos, load them up and learn your stuff…