New Zealand field trips October 2008

[David Lyttle]

Following on from my last post the track reaches the forest margin and enters a belt of subalpine scrub with Dracophyllum longifolium prominent

Picture 1 is looking back down the hill to the Libocedrus forest You can see the live and also dead standing trees rising above a canopy of smaller tree species.

Picture 2 show a view back down Swampy Spur towards the east to Mt Cargill (left centre ,with a TV transmission tower on its summit). The indigenous forest runs from the left to the patch of cleared ground. Running up from the right above the clear ground is an exotic plantation of Pinus radiata. The clear ground is where a plantation of Pinus radiata has recently been felled. On the far right you can see yellow gorse taking over what was formerly farmed pasture.

Picture 3 is a similar view looking down towards Dunedin city.In the far distance are the hills of the Otago Peninsula.

Picture 4 is looking approximately north east across the upper Waitati Valley to Mopanui (far left). All these high points are the eroded remains of old basalt plugs erupted from the Dunedin volcano.

Picture 5 is of a Libocedrus sapling. The forest line is artificially low and the Libocedrus is colonising up the slope. The vegetation undergoing a process of dynamic change due to a mixture of human and climatic influences. In the lower parts of the valley the forest was cleared for farming and timber in the early days of European settlement. Most of the pasture is now reverting back to forest. Initially pasture is colonised by gorse which if left eventually reverts to native forest as seedlings establish under it.The present position of the upper tree line was determined by fires of both of Maori and European origin. The other major land use is exotic plantation forestry, the two major species being Pinus radiata and Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii).

Picture 6 is Dracophyllum longifolium.

Picture 7 shows the 'nest' of shed leaves caught up in the lower branches of the Dracophyllum. These leaves are very resistant to decay and contribute to peat formation. On the Chatham islands a related species Dracophyllum arboreum is the dominant tree one particular forest type there and main peat former.

Picture 8 shows a second species of Dracophyllum, Dracophyllum uniflorum. It is a low growing trailing shrub and not as common as its more erect relative on this site.

Picture 9 shows Myrsine divaricata. This shrub has a unique divaricate weeping habit. I believe that Myrsine is distantly related to Primulas.

Picture 10 is a close up of the foliage of Myrsine divaricata showing the downward deflexed branches

[Gerdk]

While a lot of pics made in a garden environment look very surprisingly familiar to me (as a gardener from the NH) these sights are so strange and fascinating!
Beautiful pics, especially the Libocedrus stand!

Gerd

[Paul T]

David,

More fascinating pics!!  We have Dracophyllum species here in Aus too apparently, at least I came across a species at the ANBG today (have photographed it but not prepared pics for posting as yet).

Lesley,

Thanks for the info on the tree fuchsia.  Exactly what I was interested in knowing, particularly the pollarding bit.  Must track down whether anyone sells it here in Aus?

[David Lyttle]

I have a few more pictures to continue this posting. At this stage it is well above the forest with view to the coast and the hills to the north.

Picture 1 is a view looking east to Blueskin Bay.

Picture 2 is similar but looking north to the hills further up the coast.

Picture 3 is looking north.

Picture 4 is looking inland away from the coast to the Kakanui Range. There is still quite a lot of snow on the summits.

Picture 5 is a view of Swampy Summit which is 739m at its highest point. There is a road up to the top over the other side to service the various bits of communications equipment, airport radar etc some of which you can see on the left.

Picture 6 is looking back to the trig point on Swampy Spur at 666m.

Now for a few plants;

Picture 7 is Astelia nervosaAlso present are Hebe odora (bottom left) Dracophyllum longifolium, Phormiun tenax, and red tussock (Chionochloa rubra)

Picture 8 is Aciphylla scott-thomsoniiwith Ozothamnus leptophyllus on the upper right. This shrub was formerly known as Cassinia vauvilliersii.

Picture 9 is Coprosma cheesemanii with the fern Blechnum procerumgrowing in amongst Chionochola rubra and Phormium tenax.

Picture 10 is another of Blechnum procerum showing the sterile fronds

[David Lyttle]

This posting shows pictures of a bog. It sits down in a little hollow and has its own characteristic vegetation.

Picture 1 is looking down on the depression with shrubs round the drier margins. Hebe odora is prominent in the foreground with Dracophyllum longifolium extending further out into the wetter areas. Red tussock( Chionochloa rubra) is present in the wetter areas.

Picture 2 is another showing the zonation.

Picture 3 is taken looking back to Swampy Spur showing the contrast in the vegetation.

Picture 4 Is looking across the far end of the bog to the slopes above showing the mixture of snow tussock and shrubs. There are two species of snow tussock present; Chionochloa rubra in the damp areas and Chionochloa rigida on the drier better drained slopes.

Picture 5 is Coprosma elatirioides growing with sedges and rushes in the wettest part of the site.

Picture 6 shows a basalt outcrop back on the ridge. The bog can be just seen down on centre left.

Picture 7 shows bog vegetation with the lichen Cladia retipora

Picture 8 shows Cladia retiporaThis lichen drie out in warm weather becoming quite brittle.

Picture 9 is another of Cladia retipora showing the intricate reticulate structure of the thallus.

Picture 10 shows the slope falling away steeply to the east of the bog. Ther are a number of shrubs and small trees establishing down slope; Griselinia littoralis, Pseudopanax colensoi, Leptospermum scoparium , Olearia arborescens and Olearia ilicifolia.

[Paul T]

Again, fascinating!!  Great to see these wild shots.  Thanks for preparing and posting them.

[David Lyttle]

Hi Paul,

I am pleased you found the shots interesting  - I see this vegetation all the time as it is only 20 mins drive from the centre of town. ( that's excluding the time it takes to get yourself up the hill) and tend to take it for granted. I am planning to take some more interior shots of the forest as there a lot more species of fern etc that I have not shown. I have I few more shots to complete this posting.

This little excursion was to photograph a form of Melicytus but unfortunately the plants were in bud but not flowering. I found two distinct forms; the first picture shows the site where I fount the plants with a north facing aspect front foreground and a south facing aspect on the side of the knob opposite.

The 2nd picture shows a plan that is most likely a hybrid of Melicytus flexuosus. The plant has flexuose intertwining twigs and very few leaves. I found about 6 of these plants all on the north -facing site.

Picture 3 is a plant from the south-facing aspect. There are quite a few more of this form. I am unable to even guess at a species name for it. This plant differs from the first in that it has more leaves all well tucked down in the centre of the bush.

Picture 4 is a close up of the foliage of the second plant showing the stiff twiggy spines on the exterior. When I was up there I thought the two plants were essentially the same but looking at the specimens I collected later I think they are different.

Picture 5 is a species of the lichen Stereocaulon

Picture 6 is on the way down showing a fairly typical vegetation association. In the foreground is the snow tussock Chionochloa rigida with Dracophyllum uniflorum and Phormium tenax directly behind it. Dracophyllum longifolium is also prominent with Pseudopanax colensoi present (plant in centre of picture with another to the left and a third to the right further down the slope).

Picture 7 shows Raukaua simplex ( formerly Pseudopanax simplex). The plant below left of centre with the three-foliate leaves is Pseudopanax colensoi.

Picture 8 shows the flowers of Pseudopanax colensoi.

Picture 9 & 10 show the fruit of Pseudopanax colensoi

[ranunculus]

Super topic David - many thanks for posting.  Could you ascend just a little higher to the realm of Stellaria roughii and Lobelia roughii please?  (Not to mention my beloved buttercups, of course)!

[David Lyttle]

Hi Cliff,

With a bit of luck I might be able to produce something that will be of interest to you in December it is still a bit early for the true alpines yet.

[Lesley Cox]

And not in this particular area.

[Lvandelft]

I enjoyed this topic very much David. So many interesting plants!
Interesting to see these Tree Fuchsia's and the Pseudopanax in wild habitat.
Do these flower and set seeds so early in the year (early for the SH) ?
Looking forward for more!

[David Lyttle]

Hi Luit,

Many trees have already flowered: Coprosma sp, Pittosporum tenuifolium, Pittosporum eugenioides and as you can see Pseudopanax colensoi.  Kowhai (Sophora microphylla )has flowered well this year with many trees round the city still in full bloom. Tree fuchsia has an extended flowering period from August to December. Generally seed is not ripe yet though for Pseudopanax colensoi last seasons seed is in the process of ripening at the same time as this seasons flowers are coming into bloom. (but on different plants). Many New Zealand plants flower over extended periods and rather erratically probably in response a variable climate where the seasons are not as strongly marked as in the Northern Hemisphere. Here in East Otago the temperature usually rises enough for plant growth in September.

[David Lyttle]

This past weekend I went on another field trip to a patch of forest in the Rongahere Gorge south of Dunedin. It belongs to friends who have built a little hut there. They more or less run it as a game park and hunt the deer and wild pigs which are found there. The Gorge is on the Clutha River which drains the hinterland of Otago. There are three major lakes in the system Wakatipu, Wanaka and Hawea and several large rivers rising in the Southern Alps feed the whole system. By the time the Clutha enters the Rongahere gorge it is the largest river by volume in New Zealand. The river forks in two at this point and flows around Birch Island which can be seen on the left.

Picture 1 Clutha River above Birch Island.

The forest is predominantly mountain beech (Nothofagus solandri var cliffortioides) with some podocarps, kanuka (Kunzea ericioides) and the usual suite of broad-leaved trees that grow in the eastern South Island.  The forest is on the whole drier than than the forest on Leith Saddle which I have shown earlier in this thread and consequently ferns and mosses are not as abundant.

Pictures 2, 3,4 are views of the beech forest.

Picture 5 shows a thicket of Pseudowintera colorata against a background of mountain beech.

The lianoid form of Fuchsia perscandens was abundant and was flowering.

Picture 6 shows the climbing stems of Fuchsia perscandens

Picture 7 shows the flowers (  I have put this in just to convince forumists it is a Fuchsia).

Picture 8 shows Clematis paniculata in flower. Both Clematis paniculata and Clematis foetida were present and flowering. Clematis foetida has quite a strong scent and can be smelt before being seen - the scent is in reality quite pleasant not withstanding the epithet foetida.

Picture 9 and 10 are of Rubus cissioides. This vine is  covered in recurved spines and is known as the bush lawyer because once you get into its clutches is is very difficult to  extricate oneself.

[David Lyttle]

Here is a little challenge for everyone - identify the mystery photo. All will be revealed on my next posting. I am sure someone  will be able to.

[ranunculus]

If the cobwebs are a clue then it may show the stalactite like gills of a mushroom?

But it probably shows the surface of your tongue after too many beers in that secluded hut?

Super images (as usual) David...