Bracken Fern

Pteridium esculentum   terrian   rahurahu, rarauhe, rarahu

Bracken fern is found

By the look out by the kauri dam walk, on top of the ridges, there is a good example of this on the ridge top on the Horokaka  track before it joins onto the Tumanako track.

Bracken fern establishing in a grassy area as a pioneer serial

Bracken fern in the Tangihua ranges is being replaced…..

Bracken fern is a pioneer species which means that Bracken fern is one of the first plants to appear at repeatedly burnt sites. The fern creates a habitat where regeneration stage two plants can germinate. It is often found in regenerate pasture and in the sides of roads.

As the forest regenerates and grows taller the bracken fern is replaced as it cannot survive in low light areas.

Bracken fern is often up rooted by pigs feeding on the fern root. Pigs were often used to breaking fern country by fencing them into a small area and then sowing grass seed on the resulting rooting. The young plants can be browsed by goats. The mature bracken fern tends to be to indigestible for that.

Bracken fern description

Bracken fern is distinctive and can not be confused with any other indigenous, naturalised or exotic fern present in New Zealand.
Bracken fern can grow up to 4m tall but usually gets to about 1.5m. Because Bracken fern spreads by rhizmoes which sends up leaves at intervals it can form a dense almost impenetrable thicket.
The Rhizomes are stiff, 5-15 mm thick, and branch frequently sending up leaf stalks (Stipes) which are erect, rigid, dark brown, glossy but hairy when young.
The leaves or Fronds are dark green, up to 1 m long, unrolling as they grow.
Spore-bearing organs (sporangia) are borne along the underside margins of the smallest leaf segments.

Bracken fern life cycle

Bracken fern is a typical fern and spreads by spores or underground rhizomes, from which it re-sprouts after fires.
Ferns have a dominant sporophyte that produces true leaves (fronds). The leaves bear sporangia underneath, which produce spores by meiosis. The haploid spores are released, and they develope into small, independent gametophytes that live in the leaf litter. The gametophytes bear antheridia and archegonia, that produce sperm and egg, respectively, by mitosis. The flagellated sperm swim to the egg, and the diploid zygote divides and grows in the archegonium and becomes the large sporophyte.

Maori

The rhizomes of bracken fern were an important food.
It is understood Maori burnt and re-burnt significant areas to encourage the growth of bracken fern for harvesting as a food source during hard times.
The creeping rhizome (underground stem) was harvested in late winter. The rhizomes were air-dried so that they could be stored and became lighter; for consumption, they were briefly heated and then softened with a patu aruhe (rhizome pounder); the starch could then be sucked from the fibers by each diner, or collected if it were to be prepared for a larger feast.
Chewing of fern rhizomes was tough on the teeth and those who depended on it as an important part of their die often had teeth that were worn down to stumps.
When Charles Darwin visited Waimate in the Bay of Islands in December 1835, he saw a bracken-covered land that had once been kauri forest. ‘Some of the residents think that all this extensive open country originally was covered with forests, and that it has been cleared by fire. It is said, that by digging in the barest spots, lumps of the kind of resin which flows from the kauri pine are frequently found.’

References

“Sourced from Landcare Research”
new zealand plant conservation network

The need for conservation

It is apparent that the fate of the ecosystem in the Tangihua Ranges depends on putting in place conservation strategies which will significantly reduce or stop the damage inflicted by introduced pests. Most of the above species, if this is done will regenerate or can be successfully reintroduced and established.

DOC does not have enough funding to conserve the Tangihua forest, it is up to the community and others to step up.
We have set up two conservation programs so far

• Tangihua Community Pest Control Area click here for more information
• Conservation on DOC land click here for more information
• Conservation education click here for more information
• Volunteers options click here for more information

We have provided additional information on the following subjects

it is very apparent that specific information has been shared online between many organisations. Attributing to the initial source is impossible. As much as possible we use our own photos but this will take time and for extinct birds that is not possible. We have used the following websites as sources for our information

• Te Ara The Encyclopaedia of New Zealand
• Wikipedia
• T.E.R:R.I.A.N Taranaki Education resource: research and information network
• Te Ara The Encyclopaedia of New Zealand