New Zealand’s money is not only colourful, but it’s full of images of the iconic plants, animals, and fungi of the country. Here are the main endemic species on New Zealand’s money.
I love living in New Zealand for a lot of reasons – beautiful landscapes, friendly people, and the natural world. I have always liked the New Zealand money, but only recently have I realised how special the bank notes are. New Zealand’s money has drawings of endemic species, including many birds that are now threatened with extinction (none of which is the kiwi). Here is a breakdown of what endemic species are on New Zealand’s bank notes.
What Endemic Species Are On The NZ $5 Note?
The background of the $5 note is subantarctic Campbell Island. Prominently situated on the note is the 2019 bird of the year, hoiho or yellow eyed penguin. Additionally, you can see a couple of plants – the ross Lilly and Campbell Island daisy.
Check out the opposite side of each bill and you will see a small bird in profile. That is the same endemic bird on the other side!
What Endemic Species Are On The NZ $10 Note?
The $10 note has one of my favourite birds, the whio or blue duck. This bird is unique in that it lives in fast flowing streams. Thanks to the dedicated work of a lot of people this bird is making a comeback. Also on the note are some plants – a fern, most likely a kiokio or novae-zealandia, and a drachophyllum species.
What Endemic Species Are On The NZ $20 Note?
The $20 note also has an endangered bird species prominently displayed, the New Zealand Falcon or karearea. The note also has the Marlborough rock daisy.
What Endemic Species Are On The NZ $50 Note?
This note has the rare bird, Kokako on it. It also has the distinction of being the only note worldwide to feature fungi on it. The sky blue mushroom, entoloma hochstetterii is on it. That mushroom is iconic, but very hard to see in the wild. I’ve been looking for it, but so far haven’t been fortunate to see one.
What Endemic Species Are On The NZ $100 Note?
Here is a note that I’ve held only a few times while at work, but I can assure you these notes are real and they have endemic species too. The theme for this note is the South Island beech forest. You can see the mohua or yellowhead bird as well as the South Island lichen moth. There are also the leaves of a silver or red beech tree that the mohua is sitting on. I have seen a few mohua once while on the Routeburn Track.