WaterLink Waterways and Wetlands Activities

w WaterLink Waterways and Wetlands Activities Tuna's story

	"Hello Tuna" says Rere "What a beautiful home you have Tuna - clean with plenty of overhanging flax to give you shade from the hot afternoon sun" "It's changing Rere, but first who is your friend?" "Pakura, a Pukeko looking for a strategy." replied Rere "I have come Tuna to learn of our history, to understand more about our waterway and wetland environment."
	The small group makes themselves comfortable. "There are two types of eels - shortfinned, and longfinned eels like me. Both species are found throughout New Zealand and longfinned eels are found nowhere else in the world other than here. We enjoy feeding on snails and the larvae of flying insects. We have also been a favourite delicacy of the Maori who sometimes fought wars over us."
	"Today things are changing, our homes and food are no longer safe, terrible things are being put in our rivers, natural meandering streams are being channelised "
	"low-lying areas are being bulldozed, filled "
	"and piped."

Pakura changes legs, things are worse than she thought. She hadn't realised that many of the places that Tuna called home were being modified. It was happening on all the rivers in Christchurch, places where other members of her family lived such as the Waimakariri, Avon, and Styx Rivers and of course here in the Heathcote River, as well as the many smaller waterways and surrounding wetlands."

Try your hand at naming some of Canterbury's rivers (below) then follow the story of how Tuna and his family came to live in the wetlands and waterways around Christchurch.

Can you name these waterways?

Check to see if you are right. Click on each waterway to find its name.
Waimakariri River
Heathcote River
Brooklands Lagoon
Styx River
Avon River
Avon-Heathcote Estuary
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