Aoraki & NZ Department of Conservation

June 7, 2019

Mount Cook (Aoraki), MacKenzie Region, New Zealand

Continuing our way up the South Island, our group made a quick stop at Mount Cook, also commonly known as Aoraki, to meet with the New Zealand Department of Conservation (DOC) based in the MacKenzie Basin.

While interacting with our wonderful DOC guide, we learned about the history of New Zealand, the unique biota that live on the mountain range, and how environmental maintenance takes place in regard to invasive pests live possums, stoats, and feral cats. In addition to our educational experience, we had the opportunity to hike the Tasman Glacier, one of the most negatively environmentally impacted landscapes in New Zealand.

The Glacier has been reducing about 589 meters per year since the 1990s and is expected to shrink until it’s completely gone and replaced by a terminal lake. This is a growing concern for DOC due to the endangered species that live in the landscape created by the Glacier, like the land-dwelling parrot known as a Kea.