Cyathea dealbata

Cyathea dealbata, also known as the silver tree-fern or silver fern, or as ponga /ˈpɒŋə/ or punga /ˈpʌŋə/ (from Māori kaponga or ponga), is a species of medium-sized tree fern, endemic to New Zealand. It is a symbol commonly associated with the country both overseas and by New Zealanders themselves.

This fern is known to grow to heights of 10 m or more (though it occasionally takes a rare creeping form). The crown is dense, and the fronds tend to be about 4 m long and have a silver-white colouration on the undersides. This distinctive silver colouration has made them useful for laying along tracks for night walking. The scales are a dark brown and are often twisted and glossy.

Arriving relatively late in New Zealand's history during the Pliocene epoch (around 5.0–1.8 million years ago), the silver fern occurs on the main islands of New Zealand and on the Chatham Islands to the east, mostly in the subcanopy areas of drier forests and in open scrub. It is known to grow well in well-drained humus, and once established, it will tolerate drier conditions. It does best when sheltered from winds and should be protected from frost. It does not grow under the dense canopy of mature forests.

New Zealand

New Zealand (/njuːˈziːlənd/ new-ZEE-lənd, Māori: Aotearoa [aɔˈtɛaɾɔa]) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses – that of the North Island, or Te Ika-a-Māui, and the South Island, or Te Waipounamu – and numerous smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres (900 mi) east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres (600 mi) south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. Because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. During its long isolation, New Zealand developed a distinctive biodiversity of animal, fungal and plant life. The country's varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand's capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland.

Somewhere between 1250 and 1300 CE, Polynesians settled in the islands that were to become New Zealand, and developed a distinctive Māori culture. In 1642, Abel Tasman, a Dutch explorer, became the first European to sight New Zealand. In 1840, representatives of the British Crown and Māori Chiefs signed the Treaty of Waitangi, making New Zealand a British colony. Today, the majority of New Zealand's population of 4.5 million is of European descent; the indigenous Māori are the largest minority, followed by Asians and Pacific Islanders. Reflecting this, New Zealand's culture is mainly derived from Māori and early British settlers, with recent broadening arising from increased immigration. The official languages are English, Māori and New Zealand Sign Language, with English predominant.

Silver

Silver is the metallic element with the atomic number 47. Its symbol is Ag, from the Latin argentum, from a PIE root reconstructed as *h₂erǵ-, "grey" or "shining". A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it possesses the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. The metal occurs naturally in its pure, free form (native silver), as an alloy with gold and other metals, and in minerals such as argentite and chlorargyrite. Most silver is produced as a byproduct of copper, gold, lead, and zinc refining.

Silver has long been valued as a precious metal. More abundant than gold, silver metal has functioned in many premodern monetary systems as coinable specie, sometimes even alongside gold. Its purity is typically measured on a per-mille basis; a 94%-pure alloy is described as "0.940 fine". In addition, silver has numerous applications beyond currency, such as in solar panels, water filtration, jewelry and ornaments, high-value tableware and utensils (hence the term silverware), and also as an investment in the forms of coins and bullion. Silver is used industrially in electrical contacts and conductors, in specialized mirrors, window coatings and in catalysis of chemical reactions. Its compounds are used in photographic film and X-rays. Dilute silver nitrate solutions and other silver compounds are used as disinfectants and microbiocides (oligodynamic effect), added to bandages and wound-dressings, catheters and other medical instruments.

Zealand

Zealand, also Sealand (Danish: Sjælland; pronounced [ˈɕɛˌlanˀ]), is the largest (7,031 km²) and most populated island in Denmark with a population just under 2.5 million, representing about 45% of the country's total population.

It is the 96th-largest island in the world by area and the 35th most populous. It is connected to Funen by the Great Belt Bridge, to Lolland, Falster (and Germany from 2021) by the Storstrøm Bridge and the Farø Bridges. Zealand is also linked to Amager by five bridges. Zealand is linked indirectly, through intervening islands by a series of bridges and tunnels, to southern Sweden.

Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, is located partly on the eastern shore of Zealand and partly on the island of Amager. Other cities on Zealand include Roskilde, Næstved and Elsinore.

The island is not connected historically to the Pacific nation of New Zealand, which is named after the Dutch province of Zeeland.

Mythological origins

In Norse mythology as told in the story of Gylfaginning, the island was created by the goddess Gefjun after she tricked Gylfi, the king of Sweden. She removed a piece of land and transported it to Denmark, which became Zealand. The vacant area was filled with water and became Mälaren. However, since modern maps show a similarity between Zealand and the Swedish lake Vänern, it is sometimes identified as the hole left by Gefjun.

New Zealand national netball team

The New Zealand national netball team, commonly known as the Silver Ferns, represents New Zealand in international netball. The team take their nickname from the Silver Tree Fern (Cyathea dealbata), which is an iconic emblem for many New Zealand sports teams. The Silver Ferns were formed in 1938 as a representative New Zealand team to tour Australia. To date, they have been one of the most dominant national netball teams in the world, along with the Australian Diamonds, and have a winning record against most other netball nations. At the end of the 2011 international netball season, the Silver Ferns were ranked second in the IFNA World Rankings.

The Silver Ferns compete annually for the Constellation Cup a home-and-away test series with Australia, and also play test matches with other major netball countries, including England and Jamaica, on a regular basis. They have competed at every World Netball Championship since its inauguration in 1963, and in every Commonwealth Games since netball's inclusion in 1998. The Silver Ferns have won the World Netball Championships four times (in 1967, 1979, 1987 and 2003). They also won the netball title at the Commonwealth Games in 2006 and 2010.