Biodiversity
Selwyn Bush has a range of microecosytems in a relatively small area of bush and so an abundant array of biodiversity including a wide range of native plant, birds and even rare skinks and velvet worms. The south facing slopes are damp and more shaded and north facing slope drier and more exposed and in the base of a valley a stream provides a great habitat for fish and eels. Beside the stream we also have an area we call the water meadow as it can flood in heavy storms and is an ideal environment for kahikatea and swamp maire.
Trees
Selwyn Bush is in a coastal environment classified on Auckland Council guidelines as a "WF11: Kauri, podocarp, broadleaved forest".
Some of the main species that are thriving here are: Kohekohe, coprosma, mahoe, puriri, kawakawa, manuka, kanuka, mapou and karamu.
We also have some of the larger forest species such as kauri, totara, kahikatea and rimu
Birds
One of the main priorities when we started restoring Selwyn Bush was to encourage birdlife back into the bush. A few years after we started and with the assistance of Auckland Council and CVNZ we set up a trapline going longitudinally through the bush. This helped to reduce the populations of rats and possums, however it wasn't until trapping started in the rest of the valley and the local community (organized by the very successful Eastern Bays Songbird Project) that we noticed a significant reduction in these pests and ultimately an increase in bird life. Noticeable first sightings of grey warbler and kereru. The most common native birds you will see and or hear now are:
Tui, fantail, waxeye, kereru, grey warbler, shining cuckoo (summer), morepork.
Lizards and Insects
Selwyn Bush îs home to a number of at risk lizards and insects and even a a type of worm that has its own kingdom. The later a worm like creature called a peripatus (see photo) was only discovered in Selwyn Bush in early 2024. The peripatus is an intriguing find as it is not very common in Auckland so great to know we have populations here and will do are best to protect their environment. This species we found (which is a juvenile) has still yet to be identified but we do know the genus is Peripatoides, a member of the Southern Velvet worms.
Another at risk species in Selwyn Bush is the ornate skink. This is a larger looking skink to the common plague skink with a clear identifier of a black diamond shape under their eyes. We have also spotted other large skinks but still need to identify them.
Damsel flies are a common site close to the stream in the summer.
If you would like to see other flora and fauna we have found in Selwyn Bush please see our iNaturalist page here
