THE STORY OF ABEL TASMAN
CONSERVATION Words: Brendan Alborn.
Much of the forest you will find in the Abel Tasman National Park is regenerating native bush that has reestablished itself since land was cleared in the mid 1800s to create pastures for farming. European settlers to the area began purchasing land from 1854 but found the burning of the native bush quickly depleted the land of much of its fertility and the predominantly granite soils proved to be less than ideal for farming.
S
ome hardy souls stuck to their farming endeavours until as late as 1949 but the attempts at forestry, quarrying of Separation Granite and even attempts at establishing orchards were abandoned well before that.
on the previously abundant native birdlife. The populations of many native bird species which were previously abundant in the area were either wiped out or moved to more remote areas.
As a result of this early industry, land had been cleared, grass seed sown and the habitat for native critters, particularly birdlife was diminished considerably. The introduction of pests such as mice, rats and stoats also took a huge toll
While pockets of virgin native bush remain scattered throughout the Abel Tasman, the Park’s original flora and fauna began to regenerate in earnest after it became a national park in 1946. But it wasn’t until as recently as 20
20
