Course-based biodiversity monitoring at Te Kaio

Sara co-led a 3rd year ecology course this term at the University of Canterbury that included a multi-day field trip focused on restoration sites on Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū Banks Peninsula near Christchurch. One site was Te Kaio valley- which was recently returned to Wairewa rūnanga. The rūnanga, along with Orion and the Christchurch City Council, are embarking on a project to recloak the whenua of Te Kaio. Sara worked with this team to develop a rapid assessment for baseline avian and vegetation diversity of the site, which we hope to repeat over the years as the restoration plantings are put in and mature.