On the 10th and 11th of March 2016 Max Crowe, the LWRMS mudfish project coordinator visited Papakaio School, along with Debbie Eddington, the Environment Canterbury Youth Engagement Advisor. The purpose of these visits was to get in front of students and launch the LWRMS mudfish education program. The theme of the project was habitat – what lives where and why.

Both Max and Debbie really enjoyed the visits: the enthusiasm from the students was high with plenty of great questions and lots of interaction. As well as a general discussion about mudfish life cycles, food sources and predators and other threats, Debbie led some excellent activities to reinforce theme of habitat, included matching pictures of animals with their habitats, and a Mudfish game that demonstrated the importance of vegetation for mudfish eggs, and also for shielding mud fish from predators like eels and trout.

The day was finished off with kids getting their hands dirty helping with an outdoors tree potting-up exercise. Thanks to rooms 4 and 5 we potted up 80 cabbage trees, which eventually be planted around mudfish habitat in the district. The plants were provided by the Oamaru Public Gardens Community nursery, with sponsorship from the World Wildlife Fund New Zealand.