L J F

International Earth and Marine Science 2019

Luke, Frederic, Julian

Monaco
Cable Bay

Boulder Bank

What is it?

It is a 13 kilometre long
stretch of
rocky substrate and a
very unusual naturally
formed landform

How was it formed?

The Boulder Bank is composed of granodiorite. It is still debated
what process or processes have resulted in this odd
structure. Longshore drift, however, is the most accepted hypothesis
for creation. The main objection for longshore drift is that Tasman
Bay does not receive enough wave action to move the large boulders
in a south west direction. Studies have been conducted since 1892 to
determine speed of boulder movement. Rates of the top
course gravel movement have been estimated at 7.5 metres a year.

The Boulder Bank Lighthouse was
erected in 1862. It is located near the
port end of the Boulder Bank and
was New Zealand's second
permanent lighthouse. The
lighthouse tower, 18.3 metres high,
was made of cast iron imported from
Bath, England.

Maori

Maori tradition and legends provide some colourful accounts about
how the Boulder Bank was created. Early Maori used the Boulder
Bank as a seasonal base for the gathering of kai. This included birds
and birds‟ eggs from the Bank itself, and also seafood from Nelson
Haven and Tasman Bay. It also provided a base for harvesting
resources from the wetland and lowland coastal forest which used to
lie at the head of the Haven. Maori carried boulders from the
Boulder Bank and used them as hammerstones to break off chunks
of argillite and roughly shape these into tools and other implements.

Uses

The Boulder Bank has been put to a wide range of uses over the
years. The boulders were crushed and used as the basecourse for
many of Nelson‟s early roads. However, the Bank was also used for
other purposes, e.g. as a site for shooting practice by the early “City
Rifles”. Ambitious proposals were also advanced from time to time,
e.g. a proposal in 1899 to construct a fully formed coastal
promenade along its length.

Horoirangi Marine Reserve:

The Marine Reserve extends north-east
from Glenduan to Ataata Point, the
southern headland of Cable Bay, and
offshore for one nautical mile (1852
metres). The marine reserve is a little
over 5km long and covers 904 hectares.

Undaria

What is it?

Undaria is an edible Asian seaweed that
grows on rocky habitat and marine
structures. A mature Undaria plant is
distinguished from native kelp by its “frilly”
sporophytes near the base of the plant,
and a central rib along the fronds. It is an
annual, growing rapidly in spring and early
summer and then dying back. It has spread
rapidly on vessels and currents, becoming
established along many parts of the New
Zealand coastline.

A frilled sporophyll or spore-bearing
structure develops at the base of
the mature undaria stalk or stipe. It
releases up to 10 million tiny spores
into the water during one summer
season. The mature plant then dies.
This dried sporophyll had washed
ashore.

The pest seaweed Undaria is a
threat to Fiordland’s marine
environment with its ability to
quickly establish and outcompete
native marine species.

Ecological impacts from Undaria invasion
• Changes the biogenic structure and function of benthic sites
• Substantially modifies sites previously devoid of native canopy-
forming species
• Increases carbon production and export
• Modifies canopy-forming algal community composition; can
comprise a significant addition to canopy cover
• Can compete with and exclude some native canopy-forming
species at certain sites (e.g. deeper sites, artificial structures,
modified sites which are affected by nutrient enrichment)
• Can reduce the presence and diversity of understory algal species
• Changes the presence and diversity of epibiotic assemblages
• Can alter macrofaunal species abundance and diversity (including
urchins, crabs, gastropods and fish)
• May increase grazing pressure on native macroalgae due to a lack
of food or habitat for increased numbers of associated grazers
outside the Undaria growth season

The Abel Tasman National Park was founded in 1942, named after Abel
Tasman the first European explorer to sight New Zealand.

The country's most popular national park now has a whopping 300,000 visitors
every year.

Special features:
Abel Tasman National Park is renowned for its golden beaches, sculptured
granite cliffs, and its world-famous coast track.
covers 23,000 hectares of a hill-country 
unique combination of bush and beach 

Project Janzoon:
set a goal of transforming the ecological prospects of the Abel Tasman National
Park over 30 years. Their mission is to secure, restore and future proof the
ecology of the park by 2042.

Pests:
 predators kill 68 thousand native birds in New Zealand every day
Rats:
can attack birds and chicks nesting high in trees. They also eat native wetā,
snails, insects and lizards.

Stoats:
are the major cause of the decline of species like kākā, kākāriki/yellow
crowned parakeet.

Possums:
consume an estimated 21,000 tonnes of vegetation in New Zealand forests
every night.  In the Abel Tasman they can severely damage large areas of
natives like rata, totara, titoki and mistletoe. They also prey on bird eggs and
young chicks.

How are these predators being controlled in the Abel
Tasman National Park?
Intensive rat control at Falls River, coupled with rat
trapping
The Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust runs a network of A24
self-resetting Goodnature traps 

What can you see in the Abel Tasman NP?

●Spotted shags:

Spotted shags dive from the sea surface to
catch fish and marine invertebrates with
their slender hooked bills, propelling
themselves underwater with webbed
feet.

● Kahawai feeding with the Fluttering Shearwaters

Shearwaters: Kahawai:

●Fish are caught by pursuit diving, using partially-folded wings for propulsion.
Pelagic crustaceans are caught while moving forward, head often submerged
to look underwater, sometimes with wings raised, and partially spread.

● Pipis (filtering water):

●The pipi is a shellfish with a solid white,
elongated symmetrical shell with the
apex at the middle.

●By releasing a thread of
mucus, which makes them
more buoyant, they are
able to float in the water
column and move to new
locations. 

● Seals and pups

The story of New Zealand’s seals is the story
of seals the world over – once numerous and
widespread, they were hunted to near
extinction, then protected, and are now
making a recovery. At many sites around the
coast, observant onlookers can watch these
streamlined swimmers and divers in action.

● Dead pine trees:

An ambitious project is transforming the look of
Abel Tasman National Park, as wilding pines are
poisoned by the hundreds of thousands.

Three years ago the Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust
launched an audacious project to rid the park of
the invasive pines, which crowd out native trees
and the food they provide for native birds.

●Eagle rays:

 It feeds on such invertebrates
as clams, oysters, crabs and worms that it finds on the
seabed. The prey is crushed with the teeth and the hard
fragments rejected. By means of electro-sensory
organs on the head, it is able to detect prey completely
submerged in sand or mud; a jet of water is blown out of
the gill slits, exposing the mollusc or other prey.

●Salt wedge :
Salt wedge estuaries occur when the mouth of a river flows directly
into saltwater. The circulation is controlled by the river that pushes back the
seawater. This creates a sharp boundary that separates an upper
less salty layer from an intruding wedge-shaped salty bottom layer.

Our very safe and skillful plankton gathering

●Copepod:

●Barnacle larvae:

●Diatom:

●Dinoflagellate:

 What is the difference between phytoplankton and zooplankton? 
● Basic difference
The most obvious difference between them is that zooplankton is an animal
while phytoplankton is actually a plant. Diatoms and algae are two forms of
phytoplankton that are commonly seen. Tiny fish or crustaceans like krill are
examples of zooplankton.

Why is plankton so important? 

Phytoplankton are sometimes called the grasses of the sea. Like land plants,
they produce lots of oxygen through photosynthesis. During photosynthesis
they use the sun's energy to combine carbon dioxide and water into simple
foods. This process removes carbon dioxide from seawater and allows the
water to absorb a lot of carbon dioxide produced in the atmosphere. This
"global carbon cycle" helps regulate the temperature of our planet.