During our fern fieldwork on the West Coast, we ranged from Stockton in the north to the Cascade Valley (south of Jackson Bay) in the south. We were mostly near the coast, with our most inland collecting site being near Reefton. These are some of the interesting places we visited.
Plover Stream Conservation Area near Stockton. At centre, in orange high-visibility clothing, are Solid Energy’s Michelly Carvalho and Te Papa’s Pat Brownsey. I haven’t done fieldwork in a hard-hat before! The ridge in the background is a mining area. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Hills to the south of the Denniston plateau. Denniston is a hot spot for the ferns we were targeting. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Mike counting fronds (200+!) in a rock overhang at Denniston. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Pat at the cave entrance in the Charleston Conservation Area where we found the cave spleenwort, Asplenium cimmeriorum. Mike ventured about 30 m into this cave. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Wendy and Pat in pakihi wetland near Lake Kini, Bruce Bay. Wendy somehow kept her feet dry throughout the trip; I was frequently in water over my boots. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Tall forest of rimu and kahikatea enveloping State Highway 6, near Bruce Bay. South Westland has much similar scenery. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Forest reflected in the beautifully still waters of the Lake Ellery outlet to the Jackson River, south of Haast. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
The Cascade Valley, south of Haast, and close to the southern point on our trip. Photo Leon Perrie. © Te Papa.
Other blog posts about our West Coast fern fieldwork cover:
5 Comments
Hi Leon I was at Charleston over Queens Birthday and also saw lots of Asplenium cimmeriorum around cave entrances so I willfollow your blog with interest re the other fern puzzles in the Buller. Saw lovely patch of Dicksonia lanata something I had only seen in the North Island.
Hi Alice.
Yes, in that area it seems to be a case of find a limestone cave and you’ll find Asplenium cimmeriorum. Can you please send me an email (leonp@tepapa.govt.nz) with the locality details of the populations you saw, and I’ll make a note in our database.
Thanks,
Leon
best buy….my boots and i dont look for ferns in the lakes!
…in which case you’ll miss the wonders of Pilularia and the lycophyte Isoetes.
mmmmm…a summer trip sounds good. Great photos Leon…
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