Auckland Zoo has been connecting New Zealanders with wildlife for a century and now a new series is taking viewers behind the scenes to experience the incredible mahi of Zoo experts and the extraordinary animals they care for.
Debuting on Saturday October 8 on Three, Wild Heroes follows Zoo professionals both onsite at the Zoo (today home to more than 2,200 and 137 different species) and out into the wilds of Aotearoa New Zealand.
For over a decade Mazda has partnered with Auckland Zoo to help, in a very practical way drive its conservation efforts. Mazda NZ Managing Director David Hodge says it was only natural they continued that partnership with Wild Heroes.
"Wild Heroes highlights some of the stuff that Auckland Zoo is doing that isn't part of the traditional sort of a Zoo image you might have. They are also getting out in nature and preserving these endangered species, ensuring they're there for the next generation."
Among many memorable moments, the first episode of Wild Heroes sees Zoo ectotherms specialists deep in a North Island forest - working through the night –to find and catalogue a local population of Archey's frogs. This rare nocturnal taonga is number one on the world's list of evolutionary distinct, and globally endangered amphibians – and is a particularly tricky species to find - being barely 35mm long and a master of camouflage.
The Archey’s frog has remained virtually unchanged for over 200 million years but now faces extinction without support. Every visit to Auckland Zoo helps support the 'Wild Work' programme featured in Wild Heroes, enabling conservation experts to go outside the Zoo and work to save endemic species like these frogs alongside the Department of Conservation, local iwi, and other conservation partners.
Also on Wild Heroes on 8 October – the Zoo welcomes the birth of Bornean orangutan baby Bahmi – a critically endangered primate species the Zoo helps conserve in the wild, introduces viewers to the world’s only alpine parrot and newly arrived Sumatran tiger Sali, and shares the incredible story of the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of marine sea turtles.
Mazda is stepping up to tackle global environmental challenges alongside Auckland Zoo committing to halving emissions throughout its supply chain compared to 2010 levels by 2030.
To tackle on-road emissions over the next three years, Mazda will introduce 13 new electrified models: five hybrid electric, five plug-in hybrid electric, and three full electric vehicles.
But David says Mazda is also focusing on impacts it can have on the here and now as well as having an eye to the future.
"We have to look at other ways of being more sustainable. And I would prefer to do real things rather than stuff like buying carbon credits...so every single new Mazda that gets sold in New Zealand, we fund five trees through the Trees That Count programme. Everyone that buys a car has five native trees planted in their name."
David says Mazda is taking a 'holistic' approach to sustainability, with support for environmental initiatives like the Billion Trees programme and Predator Free NZ complimenting and reinforcing the work they do with partners like Auckland Zoo.
"You can sequester carbon by planting more trees and those trees become more healthy if you're predator free. If you're predator free, that's a great environment for our New Zealand native species and that's where the Zoo comes in to make sure species like Archey's frog are thriving."
Of course, for a car company, it's changing the construction of what you drive where Mazda made the most obvious impact and David says they are examining every inch of their vehicles for ways to build them more sustainably.
"When you talk about sustainability in a motor car, it's more than just what comes out of the exhaust pipe," he explains.
"It's everything in the supply chain of that car, whether you replace a lot of the plastics or use recycled parts, use natural materials. So it's a matter of finding a lot of little things that make a difference adding up to a big difference down the line."
And according to the Mazda NZ Director, that's the unifying message throughout all the environmental mahi the company supports: small steps can lead to great leaps.
"I think we are making a difference and if we each continue to make small improvements, we are going to leave a better planet for our kids."
Wild Heroes premieres on Three, October 8. If you want to learn more about Auckland Zoo's Wild Work and sustainability programmes, head on over to their website. To learn more about Mazda's sustainability goals, click here.
Article created in partnership with Mazda.
