Creating a garden for native mokomoko is an excellent way to help protect our indigenous biodiversity, it’s fun, and can be hugely rewarding. Making a dedicated safe spot for mokomoko (lizards) in your garden is surprisingly simple and inexpensive. To get started, all it requires is a sunny, undisturbed part of your garden, and a few specific items to kick things off. Here’s a blog all about how I created my own ‘Mokomoko Manor’, and how it’s now home to multiple native skinks living their best lives in the Kāpiti sunshine. With a bit of patience, time and effort, you can easily create your own!

Why should we protect our lizards?

Well, New Zealand has over 120 native species of lizards - and that number keeps growing as we keep discovering new species, which is ridiculously awesome! Each and every single native lizard species needs protecting, and with a little bit of effort, it’s easy to make a positive difference. Unfortunately, many of these species are threatened, largely due to introduced predators and habitat loss.

Introduced predators include:

• mice

• rats

• hedgehogs

• mustelids (ferrets, stoats and weasels)

• cats

• and even wasps

Countless lizards fall victim to these predators every day, and they need our help. A backyard trap is an excellent place to start. I’ve got several traps set up around my garden to help protect the wētā, skinks and native birds that call it home. You can get your own traps from Predator Free NZ or Good Wood, and start making your backyard a safer place for native wildlife. I’ve got a blog all about how to attract native wildlife to your garden and how backyard trapping plays a big role - have a read.

As for habitat loss, well… humans are exceedingly good at destroying habitats for profit and our lizards have suffered as a consequence. The good news is that with a bit of effort, you can create a suitable habitat for lizards yourself if you have a garden.

My lizard garden or ‘Mokomoko Manor’

When my partner and I moved into our home on the Kāpiti Coast in late 2020, we set about turning our overgrown, weed-infested gardens into native habitats for NZ’s native and endemic wildlife. Despite a lot of searching, I never spotted a single lizard when the garden was full of agapanthus. We wanted to ensure our gardens provided food and shelter for native invertebrates, reptiles and birds. Eventually I’ll write a blog all about how we removed seemingly endless weeds (looking at you, agapanthus) and planted lots of native plants. But for now, I’ll focus on my little lizard garden.

The ‘infrastructure’

The key components to a good lizard garden include:

• piles of rocks, logs, branches, twigs

• small shrubs, grasses and ground covers

• divaricating shrubs like mingimingi are excellent

• a warm, sunny spot that gets a lot of sun each day

• lots of hiding places, nooks and crannies

• native plants that provide berries and/or nectar

• a water source

The concrete wall - a starting point

On one of our boundaries which is north-facing, there’s a large, solid wall/fence made out of triangular concrete blocks. There’s also a wooden fence on top, as our property is on a different level to our neighbours, who are up a bit higher. This is pretty standard in our spot in Kāpiti, as we’re on old rolling duneland.

These concrete blocks were already pretty attractive to mokomoko as there were plenty of nooks and crannies, the wall gets a lot of sun and retains its warmth. Basically, ideal for mokomoko. So, we decided to work with what we had.

Big rocks

I picked the sunniest corner of the garden up against the concrete wall, as I figured this would be the best spot for lizards to consider taking up residence. I stacked up a bunch of large rocks we collected from around the garden. I took great care in stacking these so that there were gaps in between each one, with enough room for a lizard to fit through. The key is to think like a skink. How would they move through this habitat? Are hiding spots accessible? Is there a safe spot to bask in the sun? Can they hide quickly if needed? Thinking like a skink (skinking?) will help you become the ultimate lizard lounge architect.

Bricks

Our garden also had a bunch of old bricks throughout it, courtesy of previous owners. These bricks were the type that had eight holes in them for, making them perfect little hidey holes for lizards. I placed several of these throughout the area. I wanted to ensure that lizards could use these holes in the bricks as both hiding spots and escape routes if needed.

Bark and mulch

I found some big pieces of bark lying around, and added those into gaps, essentially creating a little wooden roof over gaps in the big rocks to enable lizards to move around under cover. The bark also encourages insects, which is the primary food source for lizards. Covering most of the soil is a decent layer of mulch to help attract insects and to suppress weeds, as I want to keep my weeding of the area to a minimum to prevent disturbing the lizards.

Broken terracotta pots

I deliberately broke a couple of terracotta pots I had lying around, and added these to the lizard garden. The broken, curved pieces of the pots make for excellent little tunnels, and encourage insects to hide in the damp and moist soil underneath. I reckon they go pretty well with the ‘aesthetic’ of the lizard garden too, as they match the bricks. It turns out that I got quite invested in the overall ‘look’ of my lizard garden because I want the best for my little lizard pals. I hope they brag about their snazzy abode to their other skink friends, and then invite them to move in.

A water dish

A reliable water source makes things much easier for lizards to stick around. My solution was to fill a spare outdoor pot saucer with small stones, and I fill it with water each day. Adding the stones allows insects to safely land and drink from it too, and possibly provide an easy snack for skinks! Their water source shouldn’t be too deep, because can you imagine the horror of discovering a drowned skink. I wouldn’t cope. This dish is shallow and accessible. I’m yet to actually see any skinks drink from it, but they’re wary little critters so probably run away when they notice me approaching.

The plants

The next step to perfect Mokomoko Manor was the plants. I used this excellent Predator Free NZ resource as a starting guide (also shown below). So far, I have planted:

• pōhuehue - muelenbeckia axillaris. A divaricating wiry mat-forming shrub that grows 1-2m wide and up to 10cm tall. Wiry red-brown stems carry small dark green leaves. Small creamy white flowers are produced prolifically in summer followed on the female plants by opaque white fruit which geckos and birds love. Provides habitat for native copper butterflies.

• scrub pōhuehue, small-leaved pōhuehue - muehlenbeckia complexa. Vigorous semi-deciduous New Zealand native vine that grows into a tangled mass and forms a dense mound up to 2m wide and 5m high or more. Leaves are small rounded and bright green and are produced on long wiry stems creeping and climbing. Flowers are creamy and are followed by black seeds held in a fleshy cup which geckos and birds love. In its native environment, it plays a key role in sealing human and natural disturbances on the forest edge. It also suppresses the growth of introduced weeds such as blackberry and promotes increased insect diversity. It used in coastal restoration is an important stabilising sand dune plant and it also providing a valuable habitat for birds (nesting and shelter) as well as providing shelter for insects and lizards.

• shore cotula - leptinella dioica. A vigorous creeping NZ native groundcover with fine ferny green coloured foliage. Leptinella dioica is wonderful as an underplanting, in containers or growing among rocks in the garden. Can be used as a lawn substitute in low traffic areas. Full sun needed to maintain foliage colour. Tolerates sun, wet and dry periods and salt water. Will grow on clay banks. Evergreen. Hardy. Native. Attractive to bees and insects. Flower colour: Yellow. Suitable restoration species.

• mikimiki - coprosma virescens. A twiggy, evergreen shrub with an attractive form. Grows 3-4m tall and 1m wide. This coprosma is very different from other forms. It has golden, coppery stems and pairs of tiny green leaves which are produced on tangled branches. The stems can vary in colour from brownish orange-yellow to coppery red-orange. Tiny flowers are followed by small, fleshy fruit with a single black seed in the middle. The fruit is produced after flowering, from September to November. The bark is smooth and green-tinged. Depending on local climatic conditions, this coprosma may be partly deciduous in the winter months.

• carex flagellifera (I think). Any carex grass native to your region should be a good choice! Fine-leaved, arching sedge that grows up to 50cm tall. Foliage colour can be variable, ranging from shiny green to bronze and brownish shades. The foliage is fine and arching. Flowering stems are produced from September to November and grow longer than the foliage.

I intend to expand my planting by adding rengarenga (arthropodium cirratum), shrubby tororaro/mingimingi (muehlenbeckia astonii), and more carex grasses. Also more coprosmas. And more ground covers. Let’s face it, I’m probably going to get carried away. It’ll be great. Stay tuned for Mokomoko Metropolis!

Mess is magic! No need to garden

A major perk of a lizard garden is its low maintenance. It has no need to be ‘manicured’ or look pretty. Letting your lizard garden be natural and get a bit wild is perfect. Let nature do it’s thing - it tends to know best.

Now, the lizards!

I’m very proud to say that after about 18 months of slowly but surely adding to my little lizard garden, I’ve successfully managed to attract some lizard residents who seem to have moved in permanently. It took a long while, but at least one skink has been living in this custom built lizard lounge for about half a year. STOKED. A crucial component to a successful lizard garden is patience. There are now, in fact, as least four individuals who have moved in. The day I spotted all four skinks was a good day. I did a happy dance. I even called my mum, I was that excited. This tiny conservation effort had achieved a desired outcome and it makes me so bloody chuffed. Now, what species of lizard, you ask? My new backyard pals are northern grass skinks. Keep reading for more info!

Northern grass skink (oligosoma polychroma)

Northern grass skinks are native, not threatened, and love to bask in the sun. Well lucky for them, do I have the perfect housing solution!

The Department of Conservation says:

Northern grass skinks are avid baskers. They seek sun and prefer sunny habitats. They often minimise the risk of predation by exposing only small parts of their body at one time, still remaining well hidden.

Northern grass skinks love sunny rock piles and tumbles that have plenty of crevices. Not only are they great for basking in safe spots, but rock retains heat to keep them warm during cold spells.

Northern grass skinks prefer grasslands (especially tall grass species or rank grass), scrublands and vinelands rather than forests. They love dry, open areas with lots of places to bask and lots of cover to hide under.

They are flippin hard to take photos of cause they are so ridiculously speedy. Below are some of my best shots, taken both with my phone and camera.

Now, for a wholesome little anecdote!

I first met one of my skink friends in February 2022. My neighbour brought over this particular skink in a container, as he had rescued it from his cat. Blimmin cats. This isn’t the wholesome part of the story. This is more like the infuriating part, because cats are an absolute menace when it comes to our native wildlife and this is just yet another example of their destructive antics.

Here’s the wholesome part. At the time, I checked the skink over for any obvious injuries, and because I’m not an expert veterinarian of lizards and it appeared to be fine, I released this it into my native garden. I didn’t see it again for months. A key defining characteristic of this particular skink is its orange tail tip. This means that at some point it lost its tail and regrew it. It’s quite snazzy.

Well what do we have here?! THE SAME SKINK. HELLO FRIEND!!!

I am beyond stoked to report that this particular skink chose to stick around, which means it:

1. has decent shelter

2. has access to enough food and water

3. hasn’t been predated on

If you add points 1, 2 and 3 together, it equals SUCCESS. I absolutely love having this permanent resident in my garden and look forward to spotting it most days.

Some useful resources that helped me and may help you

Forest and Bird guide on how to create a lizard friendly garden

Department of Conservation guide on how to attract lizards to your garden

Trees for Canterbury - encouraging lizards to your garden

New Zealand Plant Conservation Network - rules for attracting lizards

Stuff article: Lizards: Attract skinks and geckos to your garden

Gardening Australia - how to build a lizard lounge (Not NZ-focused but the principles are the same!)

Here’s some best practice guidance from DOC on how to responsibly care for lizards in your garden:

It's against the law to handle lizards without a permit.

Do use a pair of binoculars to look for lizards on rocks and berry-covered bushes. Sit quietly a few metres away and see if you can spot them basking and eating. During summer, the best time to do this can be early or later in the day when it is not too hot or too cold.

Do look for lizards after dark. Most of our local lizards are nocturnal and it is possible to see them by going spotlighting with a torch at night. 

Don't lift rocks as it disturbs lizard and invertebrate habitats and can destroy their important refuge spots. Lizards can die if squashed by a rock being placed down on top of them.

Don't hold lizards as it's very stressful for them and can cause them to lose their tail. Losing a tail can reduce a lizard's chance of survival because it's an important fat store. Also, the bone in the tail is unable to grow back. Our lizards can carry diseases such as salmonella which makes holding them risky for humans. 

It’s also worth pointing out that it is illegal to take lizards from an area and relocate them to your garden. Don’t do this.