Discover Nature Blog

Aotearoa New Zealand is a special place with unique wildlife and amazing wild places. Being out in nature brings me joy and I’m in awe of our incredible biodiversity, whether it be a tiny carnivorous plant or the appearance of a ruru in my garden.

From 2013-2023 this blog was hosted on Blogger as Explore and Discover Nature: out and about in New Zealand. All those posts have been imported here - their format will differ from the new posts and some links may still take you back to Blogger.

Search for key words: Nature Journal for observations and information; Citizen Science for stories about conservation and taking action; Activities for Children for nature activities aimed at children.

Gillian Candler 26/04/2024 Gillian Candler 26/04/2024

Intriguing Beach Finds: mermaid’s purses

Gillian Candler 04/11/2023 Gillian Candler 04/11/2023

Book & Nature News

Gillian Candler 20/07/2023 Gillian Candler 20/07/2023

Liking Lichen

Inspired to look more closely on my walks, I began to learn more about the lichens growing beside the path.

Gillian Candler 25/06/2023 Gillian Candler 25/06/2023

The loss of forest giants

Writing about our precious forest giants and the role they play in the ecosystem.

Gillian Candler 29/05/2023 Gillian Candler 29/05/2023

Macabre Fungi

Autumn might be the best time of year for finding fungi, but since summer I’ve been on the lookout for bizarre fungi with a rather horrible history - entomopathogenic fungi.