Māori iwi have long held beliefs and customs about the native birds of Aotearoa New Zealand. Birds or Ngā Manu had a vital place in Maori tribal life as they provided food, beautiful feathers for adornment and their strengths and personalities were a rich source of metaphor and poetry. Their behaviour was use to predict theContinue reading “Birds, Mana and Maori Culture”
Tag Archives: natural history
Ancient word of the day: vernation
Today’s ancient word of the day is vernation. This is the genesis of new leaves sprouting during springtime. This is the arrangement of the buds as they erupt forth into the world.
Book Review: The Book of Barely Imagined Beings by Caspar Henderson
The Book of Barely Imagined Beings takes its cue from #medieval bestiaries. Author Caspar Henderson sets out to write a modern compendium of beasts, and show, in the process, that truth is a lot weirder than fiction #animals #nature #philosophy #books
Who made the world?
Who made the world? The billowing clouds heading southward. The pillowed reef and a thousand animals beneath my feet. Who made the wind bracing my ankles. The shadows behind and through it all. Who makes the light dance in one part of the world. While other places cut like a frozen blade through flesh. WhoContinue reading “Who made the world?”
Ancient word of the day: Celandine
This pretty yellow star-like flower is from the buttercup family. It is common to see it flourishing at the beginning of spring in new grasses, hedges and in at the banks of rivers. It blankets forest floors. Commonly thought of as being a weed, it is still absolutely beautiful to behold.
Comforting Thought: We are all made of stars
Comforting Thought: We are all made of #stars #quote #inspiration #space #unity #connection #love
“Do not miss me, because I will always be with you. In every drop of rain that touches your tongue, in every breath of air you inhale.” Rowan Coleman
Beach walking and native birds
What do you love about where you live? I love living right next to the beach and being able to walk there each day. There are egrets, rosellas, cocakatoos, gallahs, Australian crows, rainbow lorikeets, tawny frogmouths, dusky moorhens, superb fairy wrens. All flitter and flirt through the brush and low lying bushes near the beach withContinue reading “Beach walking and native birds”
Travel: A roadtrip through the remote Eastern Cape, New Zealand
People seldom visit the Eastern Cape of the #NorthIsland because of its complete isolation from the rest of #NewZealand #Aotearoa. Here are some humble gems from this oft forgotten edge of the world #travel #beach #roadtrip
Book Review: Kindred Neanderthal Life Love, Death and Art by Rebecca Wragg Sykes
If you are anything like me and are fascinated by pre-history when oversized marsupials ruled Australia and there were multiple species of humans wandering around, then you absolutely must read this book. It’s a magnum opus of the Neanderthal world. #Bookreview #Ancient #History
Travel: The Enchanting Ogród Botaniczny of Kraków
The Ogród Botaniczny of Kraków has a long scientific heritage that dates back to 1783. They are the oldest scientific gardens in Poland and were established by Professor Józef Bogumił Rogaliński.
Throughout this time many inquisitive and curious minds have peered into the depths of floral wonders and the garden was pivotal during the Enlightenment period in Poland, as a centre for botanical research and the dissemination of botanical knowledge across Europe.
Content Catnip 