Two days, 15 editors, 750 edits

Nestled among the native forest of Ōtari-Wilton’s Bush, editors from Wellington and beyond came together to improve articles focused on Aotearoa New Zealand’s native flora and fauna.

The New Zealand Species Edit-a-thon, held on 19 October and 2 November 2024, resulted in some impressive outcomes for Wikipedia content on New Zealand species. Seasoned editors were pleased to welcome newcomers, showing them the ropes on getting started with Wikipedia editing, and giving everyone who attended a chance to contribute to sharing the wonders of our unique biodiversity.

Their collective mahi resulted in some impressive statistics

• 52,230 words added
• 44 new articles created
• 142 articles edited
• 448 references added

One particular success of the Edit-a-thon was requesting a licence change for this image of the newly identified Tohu gecko (Hoplodactylus tohu). © Halema Jamieson CC BY 4.0

This event  was proudly supported by Wikimedia Aotearoa New Zealand and Wellington City Council. A huge thank you goes out to organisers Stitchbird2, Ambrosia10 and Noracrentiss for their collective efforts to make this event happen.

If you’re interested in organising an edit-a-thon in your area, you can learn more here.