What are our special places? Our National Parks are some of our special places. New Zealand has 14 National Parks. The largest is Fiordland National Park, at 12, 519 square kilometres while the smallest is Abel Tasman National Park at 225 square km. This is a very popular place on the NE coast of the South Island.

　　The coastline of our country, with beaches and rocky shores, gives us many other special places to visit and enjoy the natural scenery. Native bush on hills and around mountains also gives us popular places to visit and enjoy the natural scenery.

　　Our native wildlife includes sea mammals such as dolphin and seals. Yesterday DOC created a new marine reserve around Taranaki to protect the Maui Dolphin. Listen to April 15 2013 to hear about the Akaroa marine reserve.

　　Other native wildlife are our native birds, lizards and insects. The only native mammals are bats. All other mammals like sheep, cows, dogs, cats and so on are not native to New Zealand. When the first Maori came to New Zealand, probably about 700 years ago, there were no land mammals. Maori brought dogs and rats with them. Europeans brought farming mammals in the 19th century.

　　So this week is a time to teach children about looking after our native landscape, plants and animals. It’s a time for all of us to enjoy our special outdoor places.

　　Vocabulary

　　conservation – protect the environment

　　coastline – the line between the sea and the land; the shore

　　marine – sea

　　reserve – protected area

　　mammals – warm-blooded animals which give birth to live babies; the babies drink mother’s milk

　　native – born in this country

　　brought – past of bring (compare bought, past of buy)

　　landscape – large area of natural scenery