Botanic Gardens!

Yesterday we went to the botanic gardens and we learnt all about the animals and living species and how the world has changed. We first sat down and talked about what the space we live in now was like 2000 years ago. It's crazy but it was all wetlands! Tree trunks where soden and the whole ground was just giant and when. When the Maori arrived they drained all the water out so it was firmer ground. Years later when the Europeans arrived they went to the rivers like the Avon and made the sides straighter and closer together so the water would flow quicker but this meant taking away all the bushes beside the river which meant that ducks and other small animals that lived in the plants lost homes. Now people are planting these bushes again to try and help bring back homes and animals. We also played some games like one where we got an animal pegged to our back and had to guess what animal it was, what it's life status was and what its origin status was. I was the Laughing Owl, I was extinct and I was endemic (Meaning it was only ever found in new Zealand). The other game we played was we stood behind a rope and at a sight saying Botanical gardens and another rope 10m ahead had a sign saying Port hills. This is because in summer the fantails fly up to the port hills but in winter they fly down because it gets too cold but when they fly it is a very long trip so they have to stop along the way. We each got given a square of carpet that resembles a green space. A green space are spots where fantails can stop, sleep and find food part way through this trip. These spaces are parks, backyards and other green spaces! Sometimes it can be hard to find one so in groups we had to get from one line to the other without touching the grass. I worked with Kirsten and Isla and together we (awkwardly!) made our way across. Once everyone had done that two people who were acting as construction workers trying to build in green spaces could come around and take some squares of carpet if we weren't standing on them. Isla fell off when one square got taken away but Kirsten and I quickly got across without touching the grass. The whole trip was heaps of fun and I definitely recommend going! :)