insects | Matuku Link https://matukulink.org.nz Closing the gap - Linking untouched kauri forest, a river valley, wetlands and the sea. Mon, 01 Jun 2026 21:40:31 +0000 en-NZ hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 Tasting with your Feet https://matukulink.org.nz/product/tasting-with-your-feet/ Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:51:23 +0000 https://matukulink.org.nz/?post_type=product&p=1008979 Tasting with your Feet is a fascinating insight into the ways that animals use sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and other sensory abilities to make sense of the world. One of the most interesting aspects of the animal kingdom is the way that animals have developed an incredible array of senses to live day-to-day in the world. Butterflies taste with their feet, a bumblebee can see a flower’s ultraviolet colours, a shark can sense its prey’s electric pulses, a bat can use echolocation to fly through a forest at night without hitting anything, a godwit can use the Earth’s magnetic field to navigate from Alaska to New Zealand. Tasting with your Feet explores the myriad, and often bizarre ways that animals use sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and the ability to sense movement, to make their way in the world. With clear descriptions and wonderfully illustrative artwork, Ned Barraud opens up this world to children in a highly original way. Any child interested in the animals around them will be intrigued by this beautiful book.]]> Tasting with your Feet – Ned Barraud  $22

Tasting with your Feet is a fascinating insight into the ways that animals use sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and other sensory abilities to make sense of the world. One of the most interesting aspects of the animal kingdom is the way that animals have developed an incredible array of senses to live day-to-day in the world. Butterflies taste with their feet, a bumblebee can see a flower’s ultraviolet colours, a shark can sense its prey’s electric pulses, a bat can use echolocation to fly through a forest at night without hitting anything, a godwit can use the Earth’s magnetic field to navigate from Alaska to New Zealand. Tasting with your Feet explores the myriad, and often bizarre ways that animals use sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and the ability to sense movement, to make their way in the world. With clear descriptions and wonderfully illustrative artwork, Ned Barraud opens up this world to children in a highly original way. Any child interested in the animals around them will be intrigued by this beautiful book.

]]> The Living Tree https://matukulink.org.nz/product/the-living-tree/ Tue, 31 Mar 2026 21:46:40 +0000 https://matukulink.org.nz/?post_type=product&p=1008974  

 

The Living Tree – Dave Gunson $25.00

An in-depth look at native and introduced New Zealand trees and all the life that lives and thrives in, on and around the unique environments that they provide.

Featuring information about the many fascinating animals, plants and fungi that live within the varied habitats of our trees, including fantail, kereru, giant weta, huhu beetle, forest gecko, shore skink, bracket fungi, clematis and many more!

 

]]> Tuna kuwharuwharu / Longfin Eel Soft Toy https://matukulink.org.nz/product/tuna-kuwharuwharu-longfin-eel-soft-toy/ Fri, 09 May 2025 02:13:50 +0000 https://matukulink.org.nz/?post_type=product&p=1007724 Tuna kūwharuwharu / Longfin Eel Soft Toy]]>  

Tuna kuwharuwharu / Longfin Eel Soft Toy – $30

Celebrate the wonder of one of our most iconic endemic species with this soft and snuggly tuna kuwharuwharu / New Zealand’s longfin eel. With its sleek body and soulful eyes, this soft toy companion is perfect for nature lovers big and small.

Tuna kuwharuwharu are the largest freshwater eel species in the world. Females can grow up to 2 metres long and live for over 100 years! With dark colouring, a pale belly, and distinctive wrinkles when they bend, these wetland giants are truly one of a kind.

They live in cold, clean lakes and rivers, and make an epic migration to deep ocean trenches near Tonga to breed, just once at the end of their lives. Their young return to Aotearoa, growing and changing along the way. Some may even climb waterfalls up to 20 metres high to find a freshwater stream to call home.

Features:

  • Approx. 53cm long

  • Handmade to the highest quality standards

  • Recycled PET fibre fill

  • Made in an ICTI Ethical Toy Program–audited factory

  • Surface washable

  • Perfect for education, display, or bedtime cuddles

 

All proceeds go towards Matuku Link’s conservation and education mahi, helping us protect habitats and inspire future nature heroes.

 

 

]]> Wētāpunga / Giant Wētā Soft Toy https://matukulink.org.nz/product/wetapunga-giant-weta-soft-toy/ Fri, 09 May 2025 01:39:20 +0000 https://matukulink.org.nz/?post_type=product&p=1007719 Wētāpunga / Giant Wētā Soft Toy]]>

Wētāpunga / Giant Wētā Soft Toy – $30

A cuddly creepy-crawly that supports conservation!

The wētāpunga is one of Aotearoa’s most iconic, and impressive insects. This soft toy version captures the charm of New Zealand’s giant wētā species, complete with its large body, spiny legs, and curved tusks.

Once found across Northland, Auckland and Aotea (Great Barrier Island), wētāpunga populations declined due to habitat loss and predators. Today, thanks to conservation work, they’ve been successfully reintroduced to pest-free islands like Tiritiri Matangi and Motuora.

Whether you’re a fan of insects or want to spark a child’s curiosity, this soft toy makes a fun and meaningful gift.

Features:

  • Approx. 29cm long

  • Realistic detailing: large body, spiny limbs and all!

  • Handmade to the highest quality standards

  • Recycled PET fibre fill

  • Made in an ICTI Ethical Toy Program–audited factory

  • Surface washable

  • Perfect for education, display, or bedtime cuddles

 

All proceeds go towards Matuku Link’s conservation and education mahi. Protecting habitats and inspiring future nature heroes.

 

]]> In the Bush https://matukulink.org.nz/product/in-the-bush-book/ Tue, 06 Jun 2023 00:01:36 +0000 https://matukulink.org.nz/?post_type=product&p=503859 In the Bush – Gillian Candler & Ned Barraud  $22

In the Bush is the fourth title in the popular and award-winning ‘explore & discover’ series. The successful author and illustrator combination of Gillian Candler and Ned Barraud, turn their attention to the New Zealand bush and its iconic animals and plants. Young readers will be fascinated to learn more about familiar creatures as well as discover other intriguing plants and animals and see how they relate to each other in the forest ecosystem. Learn about pests and other dangers to our native wildlife and catch a glimpse of animals and plants that thrive in wildlife sanctuaries.

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