Bringing ngutukākā back from the brink

Ngutukākā, or kākābeak, is a popular garden plant in Aotearoa. But in the wild, it is now rarer than kākāpō, with only about 100 individual plants surviving on steep, inaccessible cliffs. The East Coast is one of its remaining strongholds and the Tairāwhiti Ngutukākā Trust is on a mission to bring the taonga back. Veronika Meduna joins the inaugural Tairāwhiti Ngutukākā Festival to find out more about the community’s efforts to turn State Highway 35 into a Crimson Highway by rewilding this iconic native. Guests:Graeme Atkins, Tairāwhiti Ngutukākā TrustMere Tamanui, Tairāwhiti Ngutukākā TrustHōhepa Waenga, East Coast Myrtle Rust Response TeamNatalie Robertson, artist and Associate Professor at Auckland University of TechnologyEmma Giesen, Trees That CountStephanie Gardner, Trees That CountTamariki from Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o MangatunaLearn more:Read the article that accompanies this episode.Visit the Tairāwhiti Ngutukākā websiteGraeme Atkins featured in a recent episode of Country Life.For more on rare flora, Our Changing World has covered threatened limestone plants and explored what will happen to alpine plants in a warming world.Sign up to the Our Changing World monthly newsletter for episode backstories, science analysis and more.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details