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Articles by Leon Perrie
Regional conservation assessment of Greater Wellington’s flora: Threatened, At Risk, and Data‑Deficient Species
Knowing where species occur and how common they are is key for conservation management. Last year, Te Papa botanists Lara Shepherd and Leon Perrie were part of an expert panel that assessed the conservation status of every indigenous vascular plant species in the Greater Wellington region – over 1000 in total! The next challenge is to learn more about those species that are rare or for which we still have very little information.
Gathering rare mosses data
Curator Botany Leon Perrie was recently part of a panel that, for the first time, assessed the conservation status of all the mosses in Aotearoa New Zealand. Here, he introduces a few species you can report if you see them when you’re next mingling with moss. There are about 500 species of mosses indigenous to New Zealand – roughly one-seventh of our native land plant biodiversity. Some species of moss, also known as pūkohukohu, are thriving, as they are common and widespread.
Not that knotweed! Common names can cause communication confusion
Recording the distributions of weeds both in Wellington and further afield is an ongoing interest for Te Papa’s Botany Curator Leon Perrie and Researcher Lara Shepherd. Together they have added hundreds of weed specimens to Te Papa’s herbarium since the Covid lockdown. One recent weed collecting trip to Upper Hutt demonstrated how the use of common names can lead to confusion. Many plant species have at least two names: a scientific name and one or more common names.
Tmesipteris eucampta (Psilotaceae), a newly described species for plants of Tmesipteris from Lord Howe Island
ABSTRACT Tmesipteris eucampta is described here as a new fern species endemic to Lord Howe Island. Plants of Tmesipteris from Lord Howe Island have long been attributed to T. truncata. However, the elongated and more fusiform synangia and narrowly oblong or narrowly obovate leaves of T. eucampta distinguish it morphologically from all other species of Tmesipteris. Its stems and leaves are also more pliable, which is the characteristic it is named after.
Summer fern hunting
The warmer months are, in many respects, the ideal time for enjoying nature, including connecting with the amazing diversity of plants around us. This time last year, Curator Botany Leon Perrie was traversing the country to get the final photos for the fern guidebook he co-authored with Patrick Brownsey. Ferns are prominent throughout much of Aotearoa New Zealand, and together with lycophytes* comprise about 8% of the indigenous vascular flora.
Another species of sedge for Aotearoa – the threatened Schoenus vacillans is reinstated | Te Papa’s Blog
A species of sedge hiding under our noses for over a hundred years has been revealed by Te Papa’s Science Researcher Lara Shepherd, Botany Curator Leon Perrie and the University of Auckland’s Marley Ford. Schoenus vacillans is a sedge described from Coromandel in 1878. However, botanists since 1906 have considered it as simply another form of the common bog-rush (Schoenus apogon), which occurs in New Zealand, Australia, Taiwan, New Guinea and possibly Japan.
Collecting plants from an important forest remnant in Hawke’s Bay
In March, Te Papa’s Leon Perrie, Bridget Hatton, Julia Wilson-Davey, and Lara Shepherd travelled to inland Hawke’s Bay to collect plant specimens from Puahanui Bush, a rare lowland forest remnant. Puahanui Bush, off State Highway 50, is an important ‘island’ of indigenous forest in the otherwise largely cleared ‘sea’ of inland Hawke’s Bay. After the Canterbury Plains, the Hawke’s Bay region has the least remaining native vegetation in Aotearoa.
Gear necessities: what our botanists take on their field trips
Ever wondered what curators take with them when they go out on the field (or in the mountains, or down in the depths of the oceans)? You’re in luck! Whether it be tramping the Great Walks to document birdlife, hunting for parasitic ghost orchids, co-collecting in Tokelau, or collecting forget-me-nots from very dramatic locations, field work is an exciting part of the mahi we do here at Te Papa. So what do they take?
The ferns of Lord Howe Island
Two Te Papa botanists recently spent a week collecting ferns on Lord Howe Island. They were adeptly guided by Lord Howe Island museum curator Ian Hutton and joined by Daniel Ohlsen from the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. The natural history of Lord Howe Island was introduced in an earlier blog post. Here, Leon Perrie and Lara Shepherd provide an overview of its ferns.
Patrick Brownsey 1948–2023 | Te Papa’s Blog
Pat was a stalwart of the museum, beginning in 1977. He was a curator of botany and expert on New Zealand ferns. But he was so much more, including curating Te Papa’s stamp collection, and at various times managing the natural history team and the museum’s acquisitions process. Significantly, he was a role-model, mentor, and friend to many. This blog is a tribute to his wide-ranging contributions to Te Papa and its people.
The tree of love – another biosecurity failure | Te Papa’s Blog
Exotic species that spread into the wild are one of the pressures impacting the uniquely special biodiversity of Aotearoa New Zealand. Biosecurity measures are intended to mitigate this. But one aspect of the country’s biosecurity was recently criticised as patchy, limited, passive, and serendipitous. Curator of Botany Leon Perrie and Genetics Researcher Lara Shepherd introduce a recent example of this problem.
Lord Howe Island – a botanist’s paradise | Te Papa’s Blog
Two of our botanists recently spent a week collecting ferns on Lord Howe Island. They were adeptly guided by Lord Howe Island museum curator Ian Hutton and joined by Daniel Ohlsen from the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Lord Howe Island is a nature-lovers’ paradise with much of the island protected in reserve and mammal pests recently eradicated.
Norfolk Island ferns
Three Te Papa botanists recently visited Norfolk Island together with colleagues from the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria. Their purpose was to collect ferns for research. Curator of Botany Leon Perrie introduces the significance of Norfolk Island’s ferns. Our research programme investigating the relationships and naming of Aotearoa New Zealand’s ferns depends on also understanding the ferns of the surrounding landmasses.
Getting through speargrass defences: how to safely collect samples of a dangerous plant
The large-leaved Aciphylla speargrasses or taramea are difficult plants to collect. Their rigid leaves are tipped in a sharp point and the bracts on their flower spikes are similarly ferocious. These defences are thought to have evolved to avoid browsing by moa, but they also work against botanists! Consequently, speargrasses are under-represented in plant collections (herbaria).
Speargrass collecting – a whirlwind tour of Te Waipounamu South Island | Te Papa’s Blog
Sun, rain, hail, mist and snow – Research Scientist Lara Shepherd and Botany Curator Leon Perrie encountered them all over an epic six-week plant collecting trip late in 2022. Their aim was to collect Aciphylla speargrasses for a research project to determine the number of species. Here is an overview of the trip and selected highlights. Our collecting trip took us from Nelson to Southland, and almost everywhere in between! We reached some amazing locations, many of which were new for us.
An introduction to speargrasses – plants with a prickly reputation | Te Papa’s Blog
Aotearoa New Zealand has a plethora of weird and wonderful plants. The ferociously spiky speargrasses are some of our most distinctive plants and an iconic feature of New Zealand’s high-country, especially when flowering. Te Papa Research Scientist Lara Shepherd and Botany Curator Leon Perrie recently embarked on a new project with Manaaki Whenua’s David Glenny to re-assess the number of species of speargrass. Here they give an overview of the genus.
Kiwi carrot (in a box): New Zealand’s native carrot on display
Why is a specimen of New Zealand’s indigenous carrot on display at Te Papa for the next few months? Curator of Botany Leon Perrie explains. Among the most significant plant specimens in our care are collections made in 1769-1770 from Aotearoa New Zealand by botanists Joseph Banks and Daniel Solander. This was during James Cook’s first expedition into the Pacific. You can see a specimen that travelled on the Endeavour in Te Taiao | Nature.
Te Papa’s snail expert awarded doctorate
Congratulations to Bruce Marshall, Te Papa’s Collection Manager Molluscs, who was recently honoured with a Doctor of Science by Victoria University of Wellington. Molluscs are the group of animals that includes snails, slugs, shellfish, squids and octopuses. Bruce Marshall. © Te Papa. Doctor of Science degrees are awarded for exceptionally significant contributions to a field of science. Bruce has described and named an incredible 451 new species.
Who’s living in Bush City? A citizen science investigation
Over 7–9 April, Te Papa is helping to host New Zealand’s first symposium dedicated to citizen science – the involvement of the community in scientific research. There are presentations on Monday 9 April, and various practical workshops during the preceding weekend. One of the workshops is a bioblitz of Te Papa’s Bush City – Botany Curator Leon Perrie tells us more. We’re having a “bioblitz” of Bush City, 1–4 pm Sunday 8 April, to see what insects, birds, fungi, and plants we can find.
Election 2017: Voting for the environment
This is a series on five major election issues seen through the eyes of the national museum. In the lead-up to the 2017 General Election, we have linked each of these issues to an object, or a programme, run by Te Papa. In this post, Curator Botany Leon Perrie writes about the Environment. Some commentators have touted the 2017 New Zealand parliamentary election as “the environment election”. At least some voters will be basing their decision on environmental policies.
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