Wild Animals of Zealandia

Wildlife of Zealandia
The wildlife of Zealandia includes its flora, fauna and natural habitats. The islands of Zealandia stretch a long distance from north to south and cover several climatic zones. Additionally, the Zealandian islands are one of the most isolated landmasses on earth, and as a result, nearly all of the animals are endemic to the islands. Besides three land mammal species, all of which were introduced by humans long ago, Zealandia's animals are largely birds and reptiles. These animals are more hardy than mammals and could survive a long journey to the isolated islands.

Mammals
There are only 3 land mammals in the whole of Zealandia. Due to its extreme isolation, the islands did not receive many of the migrations of Asian mammals that colonized islands closer to the continent, such as Java, Japan or Taiwan. The three mammals that are present in Zealandia today - the Zealandian Leopard, Serow, and Tree Kangaroo, were all brought there by humans long ago.

Zealandia has one mammalian carnivore: the Zealandian Leopard. Leopards prey on the only large herbivores present in Zealandia, the small Serow and the Moa. Zealandia lacks small mammalian carnivores and herbivores, and this ecological niche is largely filled by birds.

Other land mammals include the Tree Kangaroo, a marsupial the size of a large rabbit, and the Serow, a small ibex. The Tree Kangaroo feeds on arboreal leaves and short undergrowth, but not fruit, and the Serow is a grazing animal adapted to eat grasses.

Amphibious mammals include the southern elephant seal, the subantarctic fur seal, the Zealandia Sea lion, and the Weddell seal.

Birds
The birds of Zealandia are mostly endemic, and Zealandia's birds fill ecological niches normally filled by mammals elsewhere due the the islands isolation being prohibitive to the arrival of mammals. The large Moa is a grazer and is similar in behavior and ecology to the deer and serow also found on the island. In addition to the moa, several small flightless birds are also present on the island, such as the kiwi and the kakapo. The kiwi is a small flightless bird that is a forager, while the kakapo is the world's only flightless parrot, and is also an herbivorous forager. Thanks to the country's lack of small mammals such as rabbits and any species of rodent, these birds have evolved to fill the roles normally filled by these mammals elsewhere in the world.

Reptiles and AmphibiansClouded-leopard.jpg