A conservationist group says claims that a nocturnal Asian lizard could treat Aids have led to a sharp boom in illegal smuggling of the reptile.
Gecko hunted after claimed as possible Aids cure 7:33 PM Wednesday Nov 16, 2011 Read more here.
An Evening with the Frogs
The evening includes an educational talk by a Hamilton Zoo keeper, followed by a visit to the nocturnal frog house to meet the cryptic nocturnal native Hochstetter’s frogs. This is a rare chance to see these unique animals up close and personal.
Foreign skink intercepted in Hawke's Bay
Rainbow skinks, an Unwanted Organism under the Biosecurity Act 1993, are yet another threat to our declining native lizard populations.
DOC wants people to contact them on 06 834 3111 or 0800 362 468 if they see one. If possible, capture it, keep in a safe container and take a photo to help with obtaining the correct identification.
Date: 29 June 2011
This forest Gecko was discovered in Napier - and detective work showed where it had come from...
This Forst Gecko had an unexpected trip into Napier...
Two German men who admitted travelling to New Zealand to steal rare native geckos have been jailed.
Dieter Ernst, 56 and Thorsten Richartz, 47, were sentenced to four and a half months jail in the Dunedin District Court after they pleaded guilty to separate charges of hunting protected wildlife and possessing four rare jewelled geckos.
The geckos came from two sites on Otago Peninsula and one site on Banks Peninsula.
It was the longest sentence the men could receive given their guilty pleas, the Department of Conservation said.
Fears that toxic sprays killed native skinks and katipo spiders living in Papamoa's sand dunes could force Tauranga City Council into more environmentally friendly methods.
Fears that toxic sprays killed native skinks and katipo spiders living in Papamoa's sand dunes could force Tauranga City Council into more environmentally friendly methods.
The council has launched an investigation into the claim by toxic sprays watchdog Spraywatch that the sprays were illegally killing protected skinks.