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A butterfly story in a primary classroom

The New Zealand Curriculum has a strong focus on ensuring that all students have the skills and knowledge to participate in public debates and decision-making processes as critical, active ...

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Butterflies (upper primary) – unit plan

This unit plan is designed for students in years 6-8. When someone mentions the word ‘butterfly’, what image pops into your head? Chances are it’s the monarch or the white butterfly, as these are ...

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Butterflies (lower primary) – unit plan

This unit plan is designed for students in years 1-5. When someone mentions the word butterfly, what image pops into your head? Chances are it’s the monarch or the white butterfly, as these are ...

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Making moth identification guides

Names are important. They identify who we are and where we come from. But sometimes, names don’t tell the whole story. For example, the Oxford Dictionary defines ‘moth’ as an insect with two ...

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Ahi Pepe MothNet – an introduction

Moths are members of the order Lepidoptera, but these mostly nocturnal creatures are often in the shadow of the brighter, day-flying butterflies. New Zealand has fewer than 20 butterfly species ...

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Citizen scientists

Citizen scientists are volunteers who participate in scientific projects. They work in partnership with scientists to answer interesting and relevant questions. Rights: NZPA/John Cowpland Joan ...

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Tagging monarch butterflies for science

In this activity, students place small stickers (tags) onto caught or newly emerged monarch butterflies and release them into the environment. The tag number, information about the butterfly and ...

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Science and literacy – using Fred the Thread

Communication in science takes many forms. When Dr Corrine Watts discovered unusual pinkish-orange larvae living inside wetland plants, she turned to Dr Robert Hoare for help with identifying the ...

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Establishing butterfly transects

In this activity, students set up and walk a transect to observe and record butterfly sightings. Butterfly sightings are then recorded on the Monarch Butterfly New Zealand Trust website. Modify ...

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Researching with iwi

Weno Iti, Apanui Skipper and Andrew Swales talk about research they undertook for the toolkit. They describe their collaboration with iwi and their learning from them that resulted in an ...

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Developing the toolkit

Andrew Swales, Apanui Skipper and Weno Iti discuss their roles in the development of the toolkit. Andrew led the development while Apanui provided the Māori component – helping to identify the ...

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Fred the Thread – a poem

Dr Robert Hoare reads a poem he wrote about the native moth (Houdinia flexilissima), whose larva is known as Fred the Thread. The poem is from Robert’s book Six-legged Things and Scaly Wings: An ...

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Ahi Pepe MothNet: Gateway to ecology and science

Exploring moths as ecological indicators of health and connectedness in our natural world. Select here for further information, transcript and copyright.

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New Zealand butterfly families – slideshow

Most of New Zealand's butterflies belong to the Nymphalidae and Lycaenidae families. Use the Slideshow menu for further options, including view full screen, and go here for the download option.

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New Zealand native butterflies – slideshow

Use this Aotearoa New Zealand native butterflies slideshow to learn more about native butterfly habits and behaviour, then go butterfly hunting! Use the Slideshow menu for further options ...

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