Celebrating the success of World Wetlands Day 2025

What a successful day we had for World Wetlands Day on Sunday 2nd February 2025; we’re still on a high!

The sun was out, the birds were singing, the fish were swimming down the creek and we had at least 300 visitors pass through Bullock Creek! Many visitors took the opportunity to engage with the interactive displays and demonstrations, learning about the Bullock Creek ecosystem and the importance of wetlands and waterways and their conservation, to human and animal health. Demonstrations included fish displays, catching and viewing freshwater macroinvertebrates, learning about reducing the spread of didymo, meeting rabbit-catching ferrets doing their bit for predator control, learning about bees, wandering along the boardwalk to discover the native species plantings, getting to know a bit more about Wānaka history, and much, much more.

Visitors enjoyed a free community BBQ on the lawn and took the opportunity to chat with friends, new and old, and even engage in some fishing line casting fun! Some visitors were neighbours who walk along the boardwalk track daily; some were locals who haven’t visited for awhile and were awestruck by the changes made in ecosystem restoration and invasive species management; one couple who met each other at Bullock Creek decades ago came back to visit together; while others visited from out of town, keen to learn more about the gem that is Bullock Creek. Such beautiful stories of connection and of the social and ecological benefits that Bullock Creek provides for us all.

Thank you to everyone involved, funders and partners alike: Otago Fish & Game Council, Otago Catchment Community Inc and Nicole Sutton, Te Kākano, Predator Free Wānaka (formally Wānaka Backyard Trapping), Otago Regional Council, WAI Wānaka, Tiaki Bees, Wānaka History, QEII Trust, and Corrections NZ.