Chatting with New Zealand’s Threatened Species Ambassador

Today marks the beginning of Conservation Week and who better to talk to about nature and conservation than New Zealand's own Threatened Species Ambassador, Nicola Toki.

A what ambassador? The Threatened Species Ambassador is a new role that was established within the Department of Conservation earlier this year. Perhaps we'd best ask Nic what that involves exactly...

What does a Threatened Species Ambassador do?

My job is to raise awareness and profile of our threatened species in NZ, and the issues they face that are impacting on their survival. NZ has the dubious honour of having one of the highest numbers of threatened species in the world (799 threatened and another 2700 'at risk').

New Zealand's flora and fauna is so amazing it has been described by author Jared Diamond as '...as close as we will get to the opportunity to study life on another planet' because it is so unique from anywhere else. Rudyard Kipling described NZ's environment as the "Last, loneliest, loveliest..."

How does someone get to do a job like that?

I have worked in a bunch of jobs where I have been an advocate for nature in New Zealand, in DOC last time around I was lucky enough to write and present "Meet the Locals" a series of 200+ mini wildlife documentaries for TVNZ's digital channels. I also worked for Forest & Bird as a conservation advocate, and I used to have a job taking people swimming with Hector's dolphins a very long time ago when I finished University. (I also sold a lot of polar fleece while at Varsity at my local Kathmandu store).

What made you want to be New Zealand's Threatened Species Ambassador?

I have been a 'nature nerd' for as long as I can remember - lots of family trips camping in our wee pop-top caravan (which I now go camping in with the bloke and our two year old son), and I was lucky enough to spend part of my childhood in Mount Cook National Park and Twizel, so spent a lot of time outdoors. I was constantly bringing home animal skeletons, shells, feathers and assorted nature paraphernalia.

What one thing could we do to help a threatened species survive?

The best thing you can do is learn more about what makes our wildlife here so special and unique. Read lots of books about it, go outdoors and have a poke around! The more you learn, the more you'll be blown away by how ancient and wonderful our flora and fauna are. Did you know that our native frogs are so ancient they were literally hopping around the feet of dinosaurs?

In practical terms, the best thing you can do is set up some pest control at home. Get a good rat/stoat trap and give local birds and reptiles and invertebrates a place to thrive. If every person in every house in NZ did this, who knows what we could achieve for our native wildlife. Kiwi in our backyard maybe! Then you can build on that by finding out what are the best things to plant in your area, then you'll have a whole mini-National Park at home!

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