New research reveals the crucial role of the native bulrush plant in restoring New Zealand’s severely damaged wetlands and improving freshwater quality. This resilient species thrived in the past, acting as an ecological buffer, but has since declined as wetlands were drained. By understanding bulrush’s history, we can learn how to harness its power to revive these vital ecosystems.
The Lost Ecological Value of Bulrush
Raupō has been present in New Zealand’s wetlands and lakes for centuries prior to human settlement.
This plant has shown remarkable recovery in the milieu made conducive for natural calamities such as storms, floods and landslides. In a way, Bulrush’s unique equipment such as its fretted roots (that likely improved pneumatophores), wind-dispersed seeds and floating root mats, were what afforded it to boom over the dead wood and buffer the freshwater ecosystems by keeping nutrients and sediments off from getting into them too fast.
Not long ago many New Zealand lakes were pristine, and there was relatively little decline in water quality before the mid 20th century when an intensification of farming decreased bulrush populations. This plant naturally filtered harmful pollutants before they could further degrade water into the Darling River; if stopped, these same pollutants led to fish kills in December 2018 and again last January.
Bulrush: The Cultural Significance
Bulrush is also considered a taonga (treasure) species by many indigenous Māori communities in New Zealand. So no doubt, our forbearers noted how prolific the plant was and all the myriad ways it helped them surviving: food, fiber for weaving or building and shelter or refuge for a variety of important wildlife species.
The Onepu kete is one of the ecological things, spiritual things that we value because it talks to a time gone by — when Bulrush was very important to us at the time when our culture would go and pick this beautiful plant, that Bulrush kete. There are even a few iwi (tribal groups) that view the plant as a kaitiaki (a guardian) that acts as an indicator of the well-being of a lake or wetland.
The association of bulrush with native culture is hardly exclusive to New Zealand. World wide practices and beliefs were recorded forty years ago on succubi with the plant in parallels believed to be significant wherever typhaceae occur, which underpins its local significance.
Conclusion
Within the story of bulrush in Aotearoa is a stunning example of how health ecosytems means healthy communities. If we can understand what a truly remarkable past the plant has had, then we unlock the key to rescuing our struggling wetlands and freshwater systems. In working to heal our beloved natural landscapes, bulrush is poised to be an integral partner; beneficial both as ecological restorationist and cultural healer in the journey towards mending these vital ecosystems.
