The two year 13 Biology classes went to the Auckland Zoo for the day on Friday, 14 September. The aim was to get first hand knowledge of our special New Zealand species to understand why they have ended up with features that once worked so well, but were major disadvantages once humans and their introduced species arrived in poor Aotearoa. Each class had a workshop with a zoo educator looking at species such as keas, kakas, kereu and the reptiles.

We then had a look at the nocturnal animals like kiwi, wetapunga, morepork and bats, realising that they are all really well set up for success in avoiding competing for food and large scary eagle predators… but not us, dogs, cats or rats.

Our students enjoyed the rest of the day wandering about looking at how various species behave and thrive in whatever environmental niche they came from as a revision exercise for our upcoming practice and NCEA exams.

An entertaining challenge involved some students working out how our ancestors would have managed to break into food sources such as macadamia nuts and rock oysters without suffering injury or destroying the food.