New Zealand’s Native Mammals: When and where to see them –by Carolyn King (Upstart Press, 2024)
Geckos & Skinks: The remarkable lizards of Aotearoa – by Anna Yeoman (Potton & Burton, 2024)
When it comes to wildlife, Aotearoa is known primarily for its birds, which isn’t surprising, because we really do have an exceptional and unusual array of birdlife.
Aotearoa is also known for having no native mammals, but this is not quite true. We have no four-legged native mammals, but we do have two species of bat and 57 (!) species of seals, dolphins and whales. Written by Carolyn King, a professor of zoology and conservation biology, New Zealand’s Native Mammals is a super-handy guide to all of these, and to all things mammalian in general.
There are images, size guides, identification notes and “where to see them” suggestions, including the wild and in museums. Just the thing for road trip animal spotting this summer.
Speaking of spotting, and spots, Geckos & Skinks: The Remarkable Lizards of Aotearoa, science communicator Anna Yeoman tells us the stories of our lizards, who because they are too quick, too hidden, to too rare, can get forgotten in the discourse around our country’s fauna. This book is a primer on our lizard life, covering the biology, history and conservation stories of these fascinating critters. For example,124 of New Zealand’s 125 species of lizard give birth to live young, whereas their scaly cousins around the world mostly lay eggs. This is because Aotearoa has a cooler climate than most of the places where lizards abound. Other species rely on warm environments to keep their eggs viable; ours skip the egg phase.
Who knew? I didn’t, but now I do, thanks to Anna’s book. – LW
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