Wellington Bush Ecosystem Impacts

Name:

Date:

Wellington native birds in bush ecosystem

🎯 WALT & Success Criteria

WALT: Research and understand human impacts on Wellington's bush ecosystems and native bird populations

Success Criteria - I can:

Identify at least 3 human impacts on Wellington bush ecosystems

Explain how deforestation affects native birds like kākā and kererū

Describe the connection between climate change and ecosystem health

Suggest realistic solutions to protect native species

📚 Dyslexia-Friendly Reading Options

Use audio resources (YouTube videos, podcasts)

Partner reading with a buddy

Visual infographics and image-based research

Bullet-point note format instead of paragraphs

🔍 Research Tasks

1. What are the main threats to Wellington's bush ecosystems? (Choose all that apply)

Housing development and urban expansion

Logging for timber and farmland

Climate change effects

Introduced predators (rats, stoats, possums)

Pollution and habitat fragmentation

2. Research kākā populations in Wellington. How many kākā were estimated to live in Wellington in 2020?

Approximately _________ kākā were recorded in Wellington's urban areas.

3. Explain how deforestation affects kererū (wood pigeons). Include at least 2 specific impacts:

What does deforestation mean?

What are some causes of deforestation?

Why might deforestation impact native birds?

4. Climate change impacts: Research how changing temperatures affect native bird breeding cycles in Wellington.

5. Which Wellington conservation project has been most successful in protecting native birds? Explain your answer. Maybe it is number of birds, or birth rates, or something else.

6. Suggest 3 practical solutions that Wellington residents could implement to help protect native bush ecosystems:

Solution 1:

Solution 2:

Solution 3:

🌟 Extension Activities (Choose 1)

Extension A: Create a food web diagram showing how deforestation disrupts the Wellington bush ecosystem. Include at least 6 species.

Extension B: Research and compare: How do kākā populations in Wellington compare to other New Zealand cities? What factors explain the differences?

Extension C: Design a community action plan: If you were the Wellington City mayor, what 5-year plan would you create to increase native bird populations by 20%?

Research Resources: Department of Conservation website, Zealandia website, Wellington City Council environmental reports, Forest & Bird New Zealand, iNaturalist app for species observations