Checking out the Wildlife
Trip Start
Jan 13, 2011
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13
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Trip End
Feb 18, 2011
Rotorua, North Island, New Zealand
Monday, January 24, 2011
After what the locals in Rotorua called the "most rain they have ever seen" (lucky us!) -- sidebar, you know it isn't good when you cannot really see the bubbling mud because it is covered in a foot of rainwater.....well, not surprised that it rained yet again today!
We were heading to Christchurch on the South Island this afternoon, but before we left we went to the Agrodome Sheep Show, which was actually quite fun -- there are 40 million sheep in NZ, compared to 4 million people. Imagine having 10 sheep per capita....no wonder they have so many baaaaad sheep / farmer jokes around here. We got to see them shearing the sheep and the sheep dogs were hysterical. There is a breed that doesn't bark, they just stare the sheep down to keep them in line and herd them. I totally love all this quirky stuff.
Speaking of quirky, I'm including a picture of Shrek, my favourite Merino sheep -- he is a total celebrity / icon over here. He got lost up in the mountains for a few years and lived like a hermit and looked like quite the rastafarian when the farmer found him. His wool weighed 50 lbs when they finally had him sheared and apparently there were numerous cups of seeds and bits stuck in his fur. There have been books written about him and he has travelled all over, meeting dignitaries, etc. All the proceeds of the books go toward the local school in the South Island where Shrek is from. They've raised $250,000. This kind of stuff just manages to put a smile on my face. We take life way too seriously!!!!
After the sheep show, headed to Rainbow Springs Natural Wildlife Reserve and got to see a number of the indigenous species of birds. There are some seriously strange birds over here (and no, David, I am not talking about the women). A number of them are flightless, the most famous being the kiwi. How can a bird have no wings??? Strange and wonderful things happen on islands it seems. Then there's the kakapo who is like a huge parrot (also flightless) who's numbers have dwindled to about 100 thanks to our little friend the possum (Kiwi's refer to them as "New Zealand's little speed-bump".) We have racoons by the side of the road -- they have possums. Introduced by Aussies, they are cute but eat absolutely everything and have endangered many a NZ species. With 17 million of them, it's no wonder all the merino knitwear is now mixed with possum....they are quite the little revenue-generator.
My personal favourite is the Kea, a type of parrot that lives in the Alps and is routinely described as "cheeky" (even in the nature books). They are known to be attracted to shiny things on people's cars and like to peck the rubber trim off the windows. The one we saw, however, didn't like females so I wasn't getting too close to her.
After lunch we flew to Christchurch, a short flight south to the South Island. Christchurch has recently had some earthquakes -- one in September and the second just a few weeks ago. The damage isn't hugely apparent but we did see a few of the older historical buildings with scaffolding around them. The newer buildings are built to be much more sturdy. I don't know how the people here deal with the threat of earthquake, but I suppose one does get used to just getting on and being used to it, being so close to the fault lines and all.
A very English-influenced town complete with botanical gardens and an Avon River, it was a shame that we were only going to be there for the night before leaving for Franz-Josef glacier on the train. Best thing I liked about Christchurch -- the sun was out!!!!!!!
