After spending 40 years studying chimpanzees in the wild, Ms Goodall wasn't shy about getting up close and personal with some of the less attractive wildlife -- not even flinching as a giant weta brushed its long antennae up and down her face. She calmly smiled at the creature, allowing it to crawl from her hand up her arm.
She petted and stroked a tuatara, saying it had "lovely big beautiful eyes", hand-fed a kea, and threw locust snacks at the takahe.
Jane Goodall holds a giant weta at Auckland Zoo. Photo / Chris Gorman
While she might have struggled with some of the pronunciations ("the taratua ... the tar ... what is it? Tuatara."), she found New Zealand wildlife "totally fascinating".
"When I was a little girl I wanted to go to Africa, especially, but anywhere really to be out in the bush with animals ... I might have come here. And of course I'm fascinated by the weta and the tuatara, and the kea I love because they're so intelligent. The little skinks and the geckos, all of them, they're totally fascinating."
. @JaneGoodallInst is now meeting our cheeky kea in The High Country. pic.twitter.com/HhydlP11XV
She met a group of 10 pupils from Ponsonby Intermediate School, hoping to encourage them to join her Roots and Shoots development programme, which is now active in 136 countries.
The kids were equally fascinated by the creatures, and Ms Goodall spent time talking to the students and encouraging them to be "very proud" of the native wildlife.
"Are you going to grow up and look after them?" she asked.
. @JaneGoodallInst is now checking out our spider monkeys. pic.twitter.com/8mao0cDQeW
The energetic 80-year-old is in Auckland as part of the sold-out New Zealand leg of her tour, in which she talks about her work in Africa, conservation, and her role as the United Nations Messenger of Peace. She spends 300 days of the year on tour, and jets off tomorrow for Nepal, before flying to Tanzania, Kenya ("only if they're not throwing bombs"), and Burundi.
She said she gets her energy from "the fact we only have a small window of time to change attitudes" about climate change and conservation, as well as the passion of children and young people.
"It's their future we've compromised, we've got to work to help to make it a better future for them. We have to. So this is what keeps me going."
* For information on Jane Goodall's Roots and Shoots programme, visit www.rootsandshoots.org or email phil.bishop@otago.ac.nz
