spring coloured hills Wellington New Zealand
This series of views of the folded southern hills of Wellington city, New Zealand are taken from within the southern boundary fence of the wildlife sanctuary, Zealandia (Karori Sanctuary). The predator-proof fence visible in some of these pictures keeps introduced pests such as rats, ferrets and possums out, so that native birds, reptiles and insects ae protected while still being wild and free. These hills are covered in a mixture of native and introduced shrubs and grasses, and remnants of native forest. The orange/red and yellow colours dominant here are introduced barberry and gorse, through which the native forest is gradually re-emerging. The steep folded hills of Wellington occur along either side of a series of roughly parrallel north/south faultlines that occur along the line where the Pacific and Australasian tectonic plates collide and slide past and underneath each other. The huge Wellington fault runs right through the Karori Valley and beneath the central part of the city. Wellington is well known for its fierce winds across these high coastal hills, and for having many (mostly small) earthquakes, though scientists say a really big one is "overdue". Much of the scarce flat land that now comprises the central city emerged from the sea as a result of uplift during the 1855 magnitude 8.2 earthquake.
spring coloured hills Wellington New Zealand
This series of views of the folded southern hills of Wellington city, New Zealand are taken from within the southern boundary fence of the wildlife sanctuary, Zealandia (Karori Sanctuary). The predator-proof fence visible in some of these pictures keeps introduced pests such as rats, ferrets and possums out, so that native birds, reptiles and insects ae protected while still being wild and free. These hills are covered in a mixture of native and introduced shrubs and grasses, and remnants of native forest. The orange/red and yellow colours dominant here are introduced barberry and gorse, through which the native forest is gradually re-emerging. The steep folded hills of Wellington occur along either side of a series of roughly parrallel north/south faultlines that occur along the line where the Pacific and Australasian tectonic plates collide and slide past and underneath each other. The huge Wellington fault runs right through the Karori Valley and beneath the central part of the city. Wellington is well known for its fierce winds across these high coastal hills, and for having many (mostly small) earthquakes, though scientists say a really big one is "overdue". Much of the scarce flat land that now comprises the central city emerged from the sea as a result of uplift during the 1855 magnitude 8.2 earthquake.