Micro Snails in Te Mata Park

Mike Lusk, Te Mata Park’s longtime caretaker and Park expert, has been collecting litter samples to search for snails from the less disturbed areas in Te Mata Park to assist researchers from DOC. Here is an update on his current findings:

“In addition to the large introduced garden snails which are proving to be a real problem with some plants in the revegetation project, kōwhai in particular, there are many very small native snails throughout the Park. New Zealand is a hot spot for micro-snails with at least many hundreds of species. A recent count showed 15 of these in the samples from Te Mata Park sent to the DOC snail experts in Wellington. Some are fairly easily visible to the naked eye from a short distance but many are small enough to pass through a kitchen sieve and require microscopy for serious inspection. Inconsequential as they may seem, these tiny creatures and vast numbers of other tiny living things, many undiscovered and or un-named, are crucial members of the life-giving system which allows humans to survive. The Park is a good place to reflect on biodiversity!” – Mike Lusk