Tuatara, kea and pāua are among Kiwi creatures threatened by climate change
Climate change is the biggest challenge facing mankind. But it's also threatening birds, fish and reptiles that are unique to New Zealand, and wreaking havoc in our oceans and forests. Warming and pollution are happening too quickly for some endemic species to adapt, or robbing others of their habitat. "We don't even know the names of every plant and animal that lives here, never mind how they are going to be affected by climate change," Forest and Bird spokesman Geoff Keey says. READ MORE: * The ark, the algorithm and our conservation conundrum * Does the taxpayer fund climate compensation for beachfront homeowners? * Humans blazing similar path to cause of ancient mass extinction "We have made them vulnerable, and now climate change tips them over the edge." Most of the climate change effects that are affecting them will affect us too. "All these things that are going to hammer nature are going to impact our primary production sector. It relies on the state of our environment, and that includes the climate." Here are some of the Kiwi creatures most at risk: ROCKHOPPER PENGUINS The eastern rockhopper penguin is distinct for its spiky yellow crest feathers and braying breeding call. They spend five to six months of the year at sea and breed on the subantarctic islands. But over the last three decades the population has declined alarmingly. The Campbell Island colony, once the world's largest population, crashed by an estimated 95 per cent between 1942 and 2012, from 800,000 to just 33,200 breeding pairs. They roam widely, often feeding on squid and fish up to 10 kilometres offshore. Scientists believe global warming of the oceans has limited their food supply. Exhausted adults are forced to forage for longer, and undernourished chicks are vulnerable and grow slowly. Our hoihi (yellow-eyed penguin) is also at risk from reductions in food supply. And little blue penguins have been greatly affected by storms and a warmer Hauraki Gulf. WHITEBAIT Whitebait numbers are dropping perilously, with some estimates predicting full extinction by 2034. The fishery is facing a number of threats: impeded fish passages in waterways, polluted waterways, predators and overfishing. Another pressure is climate change: a "perfect storm" of warming temperatures, storms and flooding is changing and decimating their breeding grounds. ANTIPODEAN WANDERING ALBATROSS This majestic bird soars far and long over the South Pacific, searching for food between Australia and Chile. They are romantic souls, mating for life. But a sharp decline in the female population has created a breeding crisis. In 20 years' time there may be fewer than 500 pairs left. Until recently the females stayed close to New Zealand and their Antipodes Islands breeding ground. But the warming ocean is driving them further north and east in search of food for their chicks and that is putting them in the path of fishing boats. They scavenge from the discarded catch and bait, and are accidentally impaled on the hooks of longline fisheries. Altered wind and rainfall patterns also increase exposure and heat stress to chicks on the isolated Antipodes Islands. TUATARA Male albatross won't be the only lonely creatures. Male tuatara are already starting to outnumber females in some areas. Researchers have discovered that eggs exposed to warmer temperatures produce male hatchlings. They've been around for 200 million years but climate change could finally wipe out these lethargic taonga. "Tuatara lasted through a climate that slowly changed over millions of years. They could do that because they had the run of the entire country," Keey says. "If somewhere wasn't suitable there was always somewhere else for them. They are in trouble now because they are limited to a very few places. "And in each of these situations, it is that story over and over again." GRAHAM'S BUTTERCUP Aoraki/Mt Cook is home to ranunculus grahamii a buttercup found nowhere else on earth. The tiny yellow flower grows in the ledges and crevices of the Tasman Glacier, which has retreated rapidly because of climate change. Mountain regions often experience the most extreme temperature changes. Montane species could retreat to high altitudes, but will eventually run out of mountain. KEA These alpine parrots are already vulnerable. Disappearing alpine and subalpine habitats will eventually wipe out the creatures that call them home. Warming will both force alpine species off the mountain top, and encourage the invasion of pests and predators to previously inhospitable terrain. PAUA Carbon dioxide-saturated oceans are becoming more acidic. That weakens the shells of paua, kina, mussels and pipi. In 2016, PAU7 a fishery at the top of the South Island saw record low numbers. MOHUA Mohua, or yellowheads, come under attack from rats, stoats and mice. "Mega masts" large seeding events in beech forests usually happen every four to six years. As the Earth warms, they are becoming more frequent, and the abundance of seed brings an explosion in the rodent population. When the food runs out, the plague turns on vulnerable native birds. "If you are in a forest and you get a whole flock of mohua together, they are very special. But every time there is a mast year they disappear from another valley, they are quietly declining away," Keey says. "The last mast year we had in Arthur's Pass, we had neighbours trapping a thousand mice a month the forest is crawling with rodents. By the middle of summer they have run out of food if there is a mouse in the trap it is there for a couple of hours before it is gone, eaten by other mice." HOKI A fast-food and fish-finger favourite is under threat because the Tasman Sea is warming at one of the fastest rates on Earth, four times the global average. Increased temperatures reduce growth of the "grass of the sea" phytoplankton, which unbalances food chains. A dwindling fish count saw the West Coast deepwater fishing fleet cut their fishing quotas. Conservationists blame both global warming and overfishing. FAIRY TERN The dainty tara-iti are among the rarest birds in the world, and there are just 40 left living on the beach at Mangawhai and Waipu, in Northland. They live just above the tideline and so are at risk from storms and rising sea levels.