Past Events

Expedition to The Crater

Expedition to The Crater, a bold ring of basalt in a schist landscape on the side of the Taieri Ridge. It's a steepish walk up through pasture to this 20 million year old volcanic remnant, to look for botanical relics in the ephemerally wet basin and on the craggy rim. Bring hand lens, lunch, plenty of water and all-weather gear. (Rain date Saturday 24 Sept). Meet at the Botany Dept Car Park at 9.00 to car pool.

Weeds & I; a weed-led tour of SE Australia, NW Queensland, and Southern New Zealand

A pictorial tour from Ian Radford. During the course of his research career, Ian has studied several weeds in depth, including Hieracium spp., and collected many botanical slides from far-flung places. These include the N Coast of NSW, the Northern Tablelands, Hunter Valley NW Slopes, Kosciusko National Park, Victoria and Tasmanian Alps, Townsville region and far North Queensland, and the high country of Southern New Zealand. At the Zoology Benham Building, 346 Great King Street, behind the Zoology car park by the Captain Cook Hotel. Use the main entrance of the Benham Building to get in and go to the Benham Seminar Room, Rm. 215, 2nd floor. Please be prompt as we have to hold the door open.

Trip to Okia Reserve

The Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust and Save The Otago Peninsula have invited BSO to join them on a Conservation Week walk. Okia Reserve has a particularly high level of endemism and botanist Peter Johnson will be there to point out some of the rare plants hiding in the dune hollows and in the crevices of the basalt rock pyramids. It's a flat 20 min walk out to the Pyramids and there's a well-marked track on out through the dunes to Victory Beach. Meet at the Botany Dept Car Park at 9.15 to car pool, or go straight to the car park at the end of Dick Rd by 10 am. Contact person Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust Office 479 0011; email yept@clear.net.nz or Lala Frazer 478 0339 evenings.

Tunnel Beach

Half-day visit to the dramatic coastal sandstone cliffs, caves, tunnels and arches just south of Dunedin. It's a short 20 min walk down to the mouth of the tunnel, where a stunning natural arch is still covered in a close mat of coastal turf plants, despite continued grazing and trampling. Look out for; tiny selliera (Selliera radicans), sea primrose (Samolus repens) and tiny button daisy (Leptinella dioica) and their low-growing companions. A hand lens and kneeling pad would be handy. Dress for the weather and wear shoes or boots with a good grip - the drop-offs are sheer! Queries to Allison Knight, 487 8265. Meet at the Botany Car Park for car pooling, or at the Tunnel Beach carpark 20 min later.

Otago in the time of the moa

A talk by Geoff Rogers. A look at how we might paint a picture of Otago's prehistoric landscapes using all the investigative tools used by landscape ecologists and archaeologists. At the Zoology Benham Building, 346 Great King Street, behind the Zoology car park by the Captain Cook Hotel. Use the main entrance of the Benham Building to get in and go to the Benham Seminar Room, Rm. 215, 2nd floor. Please be prompt as we have to hold the door open.

Trip to Sutton Salt Lake

Led by John Barkla. NZs only inland saline lake, with water half as salty as sea water. Salt-tolerant herbs line the margins of the lake, which occupies a shallow depression in the schist landscape near Middlemarch. Surrounding grasslands and shrublands have not been grazed since 1991 and contain uncommon plants such as the endemic speargrass, Aciphylla subflabellata, while the rock tors harbour an undescribed native forget-me-not. There will be a species list we hope to add to. Its an easy walk, bring your lunch and be prepared for frost. Back mid - late afternoon. Contact John Barkla, 476 3686 (evenings).

Eco-sourcing local plant material for use in restoration projects.

A talk by Philip Dunn, Ribbonwood Nursery, Dunedin. As well as selling native plants to the public, Philip is involved in a number of bush restoration projects. These projects are located both locally and across the Otago region. Phil will talk about his involvement in these projects. At the Zoology Benham Building, 346 Great King Street, behind the Zoology car park by the Captain Cook Hotel. Use the main entrance of the Benham Building to get in and go to the Benham Seminar Room, Rm. 215, 2nd floor. Please be prompt as we have to hold the door open.

Mushrooms and other fungi of eastern North America

A talk by Dr Steve Stephenson, University of Arkansas. The forests of eastern North America support a large and diverse assemblage of macrofungi. What are some of the more colorful, unusual and interesting fungi to be found in these forests? What are their ecological roles? At the Zoology Benham Building, 346 Great King Street, behind the Zoology car park by the Captain Cook Hotel. Use the main entrance of the Benham Building to get in and go to the Benham Seminar Room, Rm. 215, 2nd floor. Please be prompt as we have to hold the door open.

Fungal Foray to Knight's Bush

Trip to Knight's Bush (Tuapeka West) to collect fungi with David Orlovich. The bush on the banks of the Clutha River contains beech, kanuka and mixed broadleaf/podocarp forest, so it should be a great locality for many exciting fungi. Bring hand lens, a basket or bag for collecting fungi, greaseproof paper (for wrapping specimens in the field) and a camera if you have one. Leave 8 AM from the Botany Dept carpark. More details will be posted closer to the date.

AGM and The World's most beleaguered biome: Temperate grasslands and their conservation status.

A brief AGM will be followed by a talk by Emeritus Professor Alan Mark. Prof. Mark writes: "I will discuss/describe/show pictures of most of the World's temperate grasslands and discuss the conservation status of each, including New Zealand". At the Zoology Benham Building, 346 Great King Street, behind the Zoology car park by the Captain Cook Hotel. Use the main entrance of the Benham Building to get in and go to the Benham Seminar Room, Rm. 215, 2nd floor. Please be prompt as we have to hold the door open.

Old Man Range Field trip with Prof. Alan Mark

The Botanical Society are invited to join an open field day that Prof. Mark has advertised in the ODT (see letters column 22 Feb.) in response to a runholder challenge for Prof. Mark to produce a photo of his exclosure there at 1220 m, confirming the tussocks within are healthier than those recently burnt (and grazed) in the surrounding area. The trip will provide an opportunity to have a closer look at some of the recent ecological work there and also to discuss tenure review in general. We will leave the Botany Dept at 8 AM Sat April 9, to arrive at the foot of the range about 10.30. We plan to leave about 3.00 PM and arrive back at the Department of Botany about 5.30-6.00 PM. 4WD vehicles recommended but cars should be OK. If you wish to attend this field trip, please contact Ian Radford in advance, so that numbers can be determined for transport etc.

Start of semester FREE BBQ

Yes, there is such a thing as a free lunch! A BBQ to welcome new botany/ecology students and new BSO members. At the front lawn, Botany House Annex, Great King Street (across the road from the main Botany building). Sausage sandwiches and drinks provided free by the Botanical Society of Otago. All BSO members welcome!

Developing an urban sanctuary - the Karori Experience

A talk by Diane Campbell-Hunt, author of Developing a Sanctuary - the Karori Experience (2002), available from the Karori Wildlife Sanctury bookshop. The talk will cover:

• the history of the Karori Sanctuary project
• the challenges they faced in getting the project underway and how they dealt with those challenges
• and their long-term restoration goals, including progress to date.

At the NEW Zoology Benham Building, 346 Great King Street, behind the Zoology car park by the Captain Cook Hotel. Use the main entrance of the Benham Building to get in and go to the Benham Seminar Room, Rm. 215, 2nd floor. Please be prompt as we have to hold the door open.

Trip to Piko Piko POSTPONED

THIS TRIP HAS BEEN POSTPOSED UNTIL EARLY IN 2005 DUE TO BAD WEATHER AND RIVER LEVELS. SORRY FOR THE INCONVENIENCE. The plan is to leave the Botany car park at 9.00am Saturday 4th Dec. NB The fossil forest site is only accessible when the Waiau River is reasonably low, so we will send an e-mail message to confirm that the river level is OK by 12 noon on Friday 3rd. We'll have a one hour stop at a fossil site with silicified tree stumps near Mataura on the way. After that we will drive to Piko Piko itself for a 1pm lunch (about a 4 hour drive altogether). There is a short drive over private farmland and then a 15 min walk to the fossil forest from the cars. We can spend about 2 hours looking at the tree stumps, fallen logs, leaf fossils, and other interesting concretions, etc. After fossil viewing we have been asked to contribute to a species list for the beech forest with large number of divaricating shrubs on the adjacent river bank. So it will be a mix of ancient and modern floral activities. The plan is to be finished by about 5pm at the site. The trip officially ends here as Daphne is booked up for Sunday, but there are plenty of things to be seen in the local area, such as Lake Hauroko, or the Giant Totaras, if people wanted to do stuff the next day. Bookings essential. Contact Ian Radford (w 479 9065 or h 472 7470) to book a place.

Weekend trip to Hinewai

Weekend trip to Hinewai on the gorgeous Banks Peninsula. Saturday 13th November to Sunday 14th November. Against the backdrop of this impressive landscape, come and see old growth and regenerating vegetation ranging from sub-alpine, through red beech forest, to coastal/maritime vegetation, and including a number of Banks Peninsula endemics. Hugh Wilson, custodian of Hinewai, and also writer of several excellent botanical field guides, will take us on a personalised tour of the reserve, which he has become identified with. Hugh will not only introduce us to his wonderful botanical companions at Hinewai, but also to his unique approach to bush regeneration. The distance to travel will necessitate that this trip is an overnight one, and there are 12 beds on site for those interested in staying. People are mostly leaving on Friday night (12th November), so if you are planning to go, you must contact Ian Radford (w 479 9065 or h 472 7470) for details. You can also contact Hugh himself (03 304 8501) to book a bed.