Blue Koura - Taupo, North Island, New Zealand - Artistically Decorated Utility Boxes on Waymarking.com

This vivid Blue Koura is seen underwater, clutching an NZ $10 note with a Whio Duck drawn on it, not really so strange as they do share the same habitat. Koura occupy streams, lakes, ponds and swamps. They are an important part of freshwater ecosystems, as cleansers of the system by scavenging waste on the streambed, and filtering sediment; and as a food source for eels, shags and blue duck.

"Cobalt Blue may seem a risky colour for a koura, which are typically brown. But surprisingly, blue genetic variants of these freshwater crayfish are not uncommon in one or two of the deeper lakes around New Zealand. Blue koura survive because the colour spectrum of light shifts as it passes down through the water, and at a certain depth there is no visual difference in colour between a blue crayfish and a brown one—and therefore no difference in predation either"....from this website (visit link)

Link to What is a Koura? (visit link)

The artist Paul Walsh has commented "I painted a koura (freshwater crayfish)... did you know one in every 1000 koura are bright blue??" and also says his painting pays homage to this: (visit link) There is a definite likeness, don't you think?

Link to the artist, Paul Walsh: (visit link)

The Blue Koura Utility Box is situated at Taupo's lakefront, on Lake Terrace at the corner of Shepherd Road.

Name of Artist: Paul Walsh. Title of the Art: Blue Koura. Year Decorated: 2018

Visit Instructions:
When visiting a waymark, please take a picture that clearly shows the artistically decorated utility box. If you have a picture with yourself at the utility box, that would be great too. Also, tell us if you liked the art on the box.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   03/01/2019 Punga and Paua visited it