Lincoln University senior tutor in ecology, Mike Bowie believes Ngāi Tahu Farming could lead the way in on-farm restoration planting, encouraging species that can provide important ecosystem services to help the farming process. “It’s all about farming sustainably and we think Ngāi Tahu Farming can show the wider community that planting reserve areas around the farms can have wide-ranging biodiversity benefits – and given that there is now only 0.5% of naturally occurring native remnants left on the Canterbury Plains, it’s a responsible thing to try and achieve,” he says. “Some species, especially the predators and the pollinators, can provide valuable ecosystem services, so it’s important that we encourage as broad a range of species as possible. Without this work, we could lose more species and given that there is a worldwide biodiversity crisis, any loss of species is sad, especially when it is caused by man. The remaining kānuka … Continue reading Enhancing biodiversity