Fergus White 2/10/25 Fergus White 2/10/25

Rēkohu

In 2023 I was lucky enough to travel on a trip to the Chatham Islands to collect data for my thesis. Included are some brief descriptions and photographs of the diverse geological features and endemic ecological communties found on Rēkohu.

Buried in Sand

Scouring and deposition has buried areas which were once forest, now skeletal branches poke their arms from a sandy grave. While the trees did not survive, some of the lianes which once adorned their crowns are holding on in the sand.

Steamy Earth

Waimangu takes claim to the most botanically rich geothermal area in New Zealand. The first species we encountered was prostrate kānuka (Kunzea ericoides var. microflora) which is small, at under two metres. The extreme heat of the ground means this species has to grow roots horizontally across the cooler exposed ground, becoming naturally bonsaied by heat.