Photo: Peter de Graaf
For almost 200 years, we've been missing a key ingredient from our native forests - the wētāpunga, the largest of New Zealand's 11 species of giant wētā.
For the past decade Auckland Zoo has been breeding wētāpunga, and just last week released over 300 juveniles onto two predator-free islands in the Bay of Islands.
Auckland Zoo ectotherm curator, Don McFarlane, says the importance of wētā for a healthy ecosystem can't be overstated.
