Sutton Salt Lake Scenic Reserve

Salt tolerant herbs and grasses occupy the lake margins, although in a dry summer the lake dries up completely, only to refill again during the winter. A range of water birds and waders use the lake, feeding on the tiny salt-adapted aquatic animals, including copepods, rotifers and water beetles.

Elsewhere in the 143 ha scenic reserve, rock tors provide ledge habitat for an undescribed forget-me-not (Myosotis sp.), while numerous small shrublands contain species such as desert broom (Carmichaelia petriei), poataniwha (Melicope simplex), korokia (Corokia cotoneaster) and matagouri (Discaria toumatou). Grasslands abound, comprising both native and exotic species. Natives include common and uncommon speargrasses - the distinctive sharp-leaved aciphyllas.