The Reserves and their features

Forest and Bird, Volume 18, Issue 1, 1 February 1987, Page 8

The Reserves and their features

Ngakawau extension ER (3,700 ha — native forest and coal measure shrublands). This area was first proposed for reservation in 1977 as part of a large Ngakawau basin reserve including both state forest and state coal land. In 1986 the Government's Protected Area Scientific Advisory Committee (PASAC) approved reservation of the state forest portion of the basin. Perceived tenure complications dissuaded PASAC from considering the other portion, the Blackburn State Coal Reserve (BSCR) controlled by the Ministry of Energy. However their recently completed coal exploration survey has confirmed earlier work showing that no areas of interest to State Coal Mines are present within the proposed extension and the way is now clear for it to be reserved. The BSCR covers half the Ngakawau basin and includes a flight of forested terraces. Nearest the Ngakawau river these support tall beech-rimu forests while vegetation on higher terraces becomes progressively more stunted up to rare unmodified pakihi swamps on the Blackburn/Ngakawau watershed. The Blackburn catchment supports a regionally unique variety of mixed beech — cedar — podocarp forest with rimu particularly abundant. This reflects the unusual wet and impoverished coal measure soils that cap the coal plateau. Great spotted kiwi are common throughout while kaka and parakeet with their large territories need lowland forest areas like this to survive. The reserve also includes part of the historic mining track between Lyell in the

Buller Gorge and the Mokihinui coal mine near Seddonville. Glasseye Creek E. R.(2,000 ha — proposed 1986 — native forest on lime and mudstone and habitat of a rare snail). This extension to the Karamea Bluffs ecological area would protect much of the habitat of the large land snail Powelliphanta lignaria lusca. Radcliffe extension E. R. (450 ha — proposed 1986 — native forest). This is a wildlife corridor linking two existing ecological reserves along the Radcliffe ridge overlooking the Buller sea coast. It includes uncommon beech-free podocarp hardwood forest. Mokihinui Forks E. R. (37,000 ha — proposed 1981 — Lowland forest extending up to tussock on the flat topped Matiri plateau). The north and south branches of the Mokihinui river join together in the broad valley of the Mokihinui Forks, before travelling seaward through the Mokihinui Gorge to emerge near Seddonville. Terrace forests of outstanding conservation value line the valley, with those bounding the South branch classed by Botany Division of DSIR as a ‘key site’’ for silver beech dominant forest with red beech and emergent rimu and kahikatea. Forests in the North and South branches of the river are also the main habitat of two different carnivorous land snail species. Behind the Mokihinui Forks unmodified forest rises to the remarkable Matiri range with its

conical peaks and layered ridges rising from great uplifted limestone plateaux. Formed under ancient seas in the Tertiary era, these plateaux have since been uplifted, eroded and broken by earthquakes into their present shapes. The Matiri Range forms the most outstanding landscape in New Zealand where calcareous Tertiary limestones and mudstones occur extensively above the bush line. This unique landscape with its broad tussock lands, shrublands, forests and herbfields supports 437 species of plants, more than any other area of comparable altitude in New Zealand. Mid Orikaka E. R. (6,820 ha-proposed 1979 — Exceptional beech forests and stunted coal measure vegetation). The Forest Service first proposed this area for protection and their recommendation was endorsed by their reserves advi-

sory committee. It included a complete sequence of forested landforms from the Lower Buller Gorge Scenic Reserve to the top of the Glasgow Range, along the entire length of the Orikaka River. The deletion of the central portion of the reserve, considered by PASAC in 1986 to be unnecessary in view of its other recommendations in the region, interrupts this reserve sequence and excludes two key features absent from other reserve in the region. These include the exceptionally well developed communities of red, silver and hard beech (with and without podocarp species) in the mid Orikaka. These mixed beech forests have the highest biomass recorded by the Forest Service in the West Coast. The other outstanding feature is the Tiger Pakihi, containing unmodified stunted vegetation on soils formed from coal measures. Elsewhere this stunted vegetation has

been severely modified by coal mining on the Stockton plateau. Blue duck are present in the Orikaka as are all native forest birds including great spotted kiwi. Shenandoah A. R. (50 ha); Glengarry A. R. (830 ha) are both forested hillsides near the junction of the Maruia and Buller rivers. They would protect scenic views alongside the Shenandoah highway, and were proposed by the Victoria Forest Park Advisory Committee. Murray Creek A. R. (2,300 ha) and Waiuta A. R. (1,200 ha) are very important goldmining historical sites proposed as reserves by Forest Service. Goldmining tracks have been superbly restored by the Forest Service who have encouraged recreational use of these areas and fostered public appreciation of the hardships and highlights of quartz reef mining of bygone days.

Woods Creek A. R. (380 ha) covers goldmine workings near Greymouth with walks developed by Forest Service through a fascinating maze of trenches and tunnels now covered in a mix of regrowth and virgin rimu forest. Nancy’s Clearing E. R. (400 ha — proposed 1981). Kahikatea forest encircles a privately owned flax swamp known as Nancy’s Clearing, which is outside the reserve proposal. Kahikatea forest and flax swamps are now very rare in the northern South Island because of farm development. Fortunately the Nancy and Ahaura rivers blocked access to these forests. Unlike many kahikatea stands that are isolated and little more than museum pieces, this stand is continuous with beech forest on the range behind down to the river banks. The Wildlife Service recommended

reservation of this forest in 1981 as an important seasonal food source for forest birds and as a rare example of a once widespread wetland habitat. Kumara Reservoir bush W.M. (830 ha — lowland podocarp/hardwood forest). This forest contains a mosaic of regenerating cutover terrace forest and unlogged stands of rimu, miro and kahikatea. The forest is rated by the Wildlife Service as a significant regionai wildlife habitat in a region where there is little such forest remaining after more than a century of bush clearance. Lookout Forest W.M. (300 ha — terrace edge forest). A small remnant of unmodified rimu — miro forest along an escarpment above the Hokitika River sought for reserve because of its wildlife and scenic values. It contains a range of common forest birds and a little shag colony.

Paynes Gully W.M. (240 ha — freshwater wetland). A remnant of unlogged forest on hilIslopes adjoining the Paynes Gully wildlife management reserve. The reserve covers swampland on a flat beside the Taramakau River. Ianthe E.R. (230 ha — dense terrace rimu forest). The only sizeable remnant of unlogged forest in the large lanthe Forest, the rest of which is now being clearfelled to meet contracts to mills at Hokitika and Harihari. The University of Canterbury Forestry School and the Forest Service are very keen to reserve this education area because it has been used since 1971 for ecological research by students from their nearby lodge. It also contains special ecological features including:- @ The only known locality of yellow silver pine (Dacrydium intermedium) between Hokitika and Okarito.

® The southern limit of a rare fern Hypolepis distans. ® It is a refuge for robin of particular importance because the rest of lanthe Forest is being clearfelled. Wanganui W.M. (320 ha); One One Creek W.M. (810 ha); Pye Creek W.M. (30 ha — wetlands). South Westland’s rivers meet the sea in flax-lined lagoons surrounded by great kahikatea forests. The Okarito and Saltwater lagoons and the Waitangiroto white heron colony are the best known areas, however further north the Wanganui and Poerua river mouths are also a maze of flax swamplan4d, virgin and regenerating kahikatea and kowhai. In places along the Wanganui riverbank, kahikatea form a magnificent wall of closely spaced trunks — a rare sight in New Zealand today. The impressive view from the coast across forests to the Southern Alps is regarded by Harihari locals as one of

the finest in the country. It is rivalled only by coast to mountain river mouth views further south which each of the respective local communities at Whataroa, Okarito, and the Glacier townships also regard as being the best in the world! Many people use the Wanganui River mouth. They gain access by a County road to within 2km of the coast. From there the Forest Service have developed a superb walking track down river and south along the coast over a low moraine to the Poerua river. Both rivers are important whitebait fisheries. The whitebait are dependent on the extensive swamps within the proposed reserve while swamps are important for wetland birds including bittern, fernbird and crake. Fruit and nectar eating tui, pigeon, bellbird and kakariki delight in feeding on kahikatea and kowhai in season. #&