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The kiwi is a national symbol of New Zealand.. The animals of New Zealand, part of its biota, have an unusual history because, before the arrival of humans, less than 900 years ago, the country was mostly free of mammals, except those that could swim there (seals, sea lions, and, off-shore, whales and dolphins) or fly there ().
Birds comprise the most important part of New Zealand's vertebrate fauna. It is uncertain if many birds in New Zealand are descended from Gondwanan stock, as DNA evidence suggests that even the ratites (the kiwis and the moas) arrived after the split from Antarctica. [citation needed] Recent studies suggest that New Zealand wrens are Gondwanan ...
The environment of New Zealand is characterised by an endemic flora and fauna which has evolved in near isolation from the rest of the world. [1] The main islands of New Zealand span two biomes , temperate and subtropical , complicated by large mountainous areas above the tree line. [ 2 ]
Dinosaurs that lived in the Ross Dependency, a part of Antarctica within the Realm of New Zealand, include the tetanuran Cryolophosaurus.The Ross Dependency, unlike the Chatham Islands, is not actually part of New Zealand, and this is why it is excluded from the list above until sufficient evidence shows that it entered what was the sector of Gondwana that is now New Zealand.
[118] [119] The flora and fauna of New Zealand were originally thought to have originated from New Zealand's fragmentation off from Gondwana, however more recent evidence postulates species resulted from dispersal. [120] About 82% of New Zealand's indigenous vascular plants are endemic, covering 1,944 species across 65 genera.
This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (September 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Hector's dolphins at Porpoise Bay, in the Catlins Prior to human settlement, the mammals of New Zealand consisted ...
This is a list of the native living mammals of New Zealand. It does not include introduced species, nor extinct Saint Bathans fauna. There are around 51 native mammal species in New Zealand, of which three are critically endangered, three are endangered, three are vulnerable, and one is near threatened. [1]
In the Cretaceous, New Zealand was much further south (c.80 degrees south) than it is today, however, it and much of Antarctica was covered in trees as the climate of 90 Ma was much warmer and wetter than today. [18] [19] New Zealand's present native fauna does not contain land mammals (other than bats) or snakes.