Riccarton House and Bush, Christchurch

Riccarton, a suburb of Christchurch, lies directly west of the city center, separated by Hagley Park, with Upper Riccarton situated further west. On April 12, 1840, the ship Sarah and Elizabeth brought the first European settlers to the area, including Herriot, McGillivray, Ellis, Shaw (and his wife), and McKinnon (with his wife and child), who established a farm in Riccarton. However, they abandoned their farming endeavor in January 1841.

Around 1855, Jane Deans commissioned the construction of Riccarton House, the main residence. The Deans brothers, among the second group of Europeans settling in Christchurch in 1843, named the suburb after their birth parish in Ayrshire, Scotland. They also named the River Avon after a Scottish river. Riccarton House, now a restaurant and event venue, offers regular tours. Nearby is Riccarton Bush, also known as Deans Bush (in Māori: Pūtaringamotu), one of the few remaining fragments of the original Canterbury plains forest. It is notable for its kahikatea trees and efforts to reintroduce kiwi birds.

In 1848, the Deans brothers entered an agreement with the New Zealand Company to protect a portion of the kahikatea forest, later formalized in 1914 with the protection of what remained of Deans Bush. This area has been significant in New Zealand entomology, with many native insects first discovered and named here. Notably, the Fereday collection in the Canterbury Museum holds specimens collected from Riccarton Bush, including the plume moth Pterophorus monospilalis. The bush hosts a variety of moth families, with some species found exclusively in this area, such as the bag moth Mallobathra metrosema.