You may wonder what Bushbuddies actually are… so below is an article that explains most facts about their existence.

Bushbuddies found in the Rimutaka forest?
Newspaper article 29 October 2007

It is not all that clear where Bushbuddies come from. They have never been spotted by Humans, and nobody did a lot of research about their origin, but it is believed that the Bushbuddies have been around for thousands of years, or as long as forests exist and that they are still present today in our pristine forests.
Bushbuddies used to be very reclusive staying in the direct area where they are sprouted somewhere deep in the forest, far away from any human interaction. They are very rare in their existence as not all trees start as Bushbuddies. Why certain seeds grow into Bushbuddies is a question not easy to answer. It is a fact though that some regions have more Bushbuddy activity listed, than others, and most of it is found in deep native forests.
Bushbuddies are endemic which means that they only live in specific areas in certain countries, even more so because they don't move around much. It is believed that Bushbuddies are not only endemic to New Zealand but different species can be present in any country on earth with unspoiled native bush. They don't seem to appear in re-growths and planted forests. It is very well possible that they also occur on mountaintops in the Himalayas and the Amazon rainforests but there is no evidence to support that. Most sightings and activities are found in New Zealand though. The life cycle of Bushbuddies
Bushbuddies are not born as such, so there are no crying bush babies lying around. They start their life just as any normal tree, plant or shrub as a seedling sprouted in the forest ground. After the plant or tree has reached some height and maturity some of the saplings (for a reason nobody knows, maybe the stars and moon have something to do with it) change into a more human life form and roam around to help out in the forest. They still look a lot like their own foliage but can walk, talk and create things. The Bushbuddies also have the characteristics of their host foliage so some of them are more flexible or agile than others. Their skin can be smooth or rough depending on the species and the colour varies between green and brown. They can slightly change colour in different seasons.
The start age of a Bushbuddy is between 5 and 20 years depending on the species. Also depending on the species is the life expectancy. Bushbuddies can reach around 800 years before they completely disappear in their tree. The oldest Bushbuddies are ones that grow out of huge trees. The oldest Bushbuddiy still visible must be Ka-u-rie the grand master of the forest and the Bushbuddy of the Kaurie trees in New Zealand. A lot younger but still very old are the Bushbuddies of the Totara, Tawa and Rimu trees. The oldest Bushbuddy in the BB stories until now is Rimu, only still partially visible in the bark of the tree. He still has the use of his hands and can move his head. When Bushbuddies grow older they slowly lose the ability to walk and act. When his time is up also Rimu will disappear into the bark of the tree and not be visible anymore. 
Sleeping and eating.
Bushbuddies sleep in their natural habitat looking like the bush, shrub or tree they resemble. You will never spot a sleeping Bushbuddy as they look exactly the same as any other shrub or tree.
While sleeping they feed with the normal nutrients any tree needs and in the same way as foliage does. Even though they do have a mouth and a digesting system Bushbuddies don't need any other food or drinks than they take in their sleep. An exemption is when there are severe droughts in the forest. Bushbuddies tend to move to wet places then and/ or sleep more during the day so they can take in more water. They also preserve water and use that to feed other non moveable plants in their habitat. Some Bushbuddies are more inclined to help and clean their environment than others which is quite visible in the forest where some plants look very organised, bright green and healthy and others look messy and dusty and worn. Ferns are usually very well looked after, have enough water and look quite pristine.
Social behaviour.
Bushbuddies are usually not very social as they live in solitude, stick to their environment and are widespread in the forest. They don't move too far away from their habitat so the chance they find another Bushbuddy is very slim.
They don't have any contact with Humans as they live deep in the forest and Humans are not very likely to spot one. It is not certain what would happen to a Bushbuddy if he is seen by a Human but in their belief it will be something very bad.
Bushbuddies can and will change into their natural form as soon as they are in direct danger or when they feel scared or cornered. They can change very quickly to keep themselves safe.

Magic skills
All older Bushbuddies have a certain magic skill or device. They don't know how they got it but at some stage, after doing something really good, it just appears to them and it grows in power when they age and do good deeds. Why some Bushbuddies have a device and others a skill is not clear but they all can do useful things with their MAGIC. Young Bushbuddies like ToiToi still have to earn their MAGIC, which is very important to them as a magic skill is an integral part of being a mature Bushbuddy. 

Species
There are three main species of Bushbuddies.
1- Foliage Bushbuddies related to all kinds of trees, bushes or plants
2- Animal Bushbuddies related to environments and looking after specific groups of animals/ insects
3- Water spirits to be found in and around water i.e. streams, puddles and lakes
4- Yearlings. These are fast-growing Bushbuddies that don't last very long

Each species can be subdivided into smaller groups.
Foliage Bushbuddies:  A - Treenians.      Example Rimu, Kiri Himete, Kau-u-ri
                                        B - Fernians. Example Fern, 
                                        C - Grassians. Example ToiToi, Flaxine
                                        D - Vinnians.. Example Rata
                                        E - Shrubbicans  Example Dr, Fungus
Animal Bushbuddies:   A - Grounders.  Example Muddum, Pirau
                                        B - Rockers.  Example Rocko,      Greywacky, limerock
                                        C - Volcans  Example Sulphar
Water Spirits:                 A - Sweet spirits Example Stepping stones
                                        B - Salt spirits
                                        C - Pure spirits
It is not useful to divide the groups even further, as in their specific families there are only one or two specimens around. It is very unlikely for a Bushbuddy to meet another from his own family. There are further no family relationships as they do not have parents or siblings. Sometimes they can act as such when buddies have a close friend.  Bushbuddies are also a-sexual. The male or female pronounce is merely related to the characteristics of their foliage or their abilities. There are no sexual relationships between Bushbuddies as the different species don't intertwine. Nowadays, because Bushbuddies like to copy Humans, some sort of sexual attraction can develop between them.

Recyclers
 Next to the Bushbuddies species there is another important species to be found in the forest.
The recyclers are creatures living in or close to rubbish tips where they can hide easily. As they are not related to Bushuddies they cannot hide into any foliage nor have a special MAGIC.
They roam around in the forest and used to recycle tree stumps and branches into dirt again but unfortunately, nowadays they tend to work more on the edges of the forest and help clean up picnic areas and such. They used to look like dead branches but recently have changed their look in a more modern way with all kind of human rubbish. If you ever see a pile of rubbish in the forest it might be a recycler hiding. Recyclers sometimes work alone or in pairs but also can employ a lot of other creatures to help with bigger projects.
Bad creatures
Usually when there are a lot of good things happening, there has to be something bad as well to keep the balance. In the Bushbuddy stories quite often the Humans are the 'baddies'. They ruin the forest, chop the trees, throw poison around and are overall a nuisance to Bushbuddies. Some Humans though, earn their respect by trying to keep the forest pristine, planting trees and helping birds survive. All Bushbuddies try to help out as much as they can with those Humans.
None the less there are some Bushbuddies that are not all that great. We better call those Bushbaddies. They are representing things in the forest that are less desirable, especially in large numbers. They are the bullies, that run over everything and decreed the forest. They are the visiting Bushbuddies from other countries with different habitats and other ideas. They might not have been bad at the start but through life, they have become more aggressive and repulsive. They are generally not wanted and are being avoided by other Bushbuddies.



The Rimutaka fenomenom.
Recently there was a lot of Bushbuddy activity suspected in the Rimutaka forest near Wellington New Zealand. Harvesters mentioned ghost stories while chopping Christmas trees. People saw things that were not possible and objects and plants in weird places. A woman thought she saw toetoe grasses emerge in her garden and disappear again and the ranger had a lot of unexplained objects placed in his mailbox. He also mentioned the unexpected loss of tools which he found back again later.
The reason why these activities are noticed in the Rimutaka's is something the scientists do not agree about as yet. One of the theories is that there might be a lot of Bushbuddies in a smaller area and they might have found each other. Some people think that may explain some of the weird sightings.
This theory is very close to the truth. As we have learned from the stories there are indeed quite a lot of Bushbuddies in the Rimutaka forest and living very close to each other. Now the instigator as we have learned is ToiToi, a young Bushbuddy who is too adventurist for his own good. He is not very interested in his environment and as soon as he found out he could walk, he did. On his adventures, he makes many friends and learns a lot about the forest that he did not know before. Also, other Bushbuddies learn how to get around, make new friends and learn a lot about other environments than their own. 
Because the Rimutaka forest is quite popular and frequently visited by Humans, some interaction is expected. The Bushbuddies are intrigued by the Humans, so they study and learn their habits and even try to copy them. With their infallible will to help, Bushbuddies are also ready to help some Humans although most of the time they do not like human behaviour all that much..
Some scientists and biology students would encourage a grand-scale search in the Rimutaka forest to find any proof of Bushbuddy existence. However, bigger organisations like Greenpeace and Forest and Birds share the opinion that some things are better left alone, to not endanger the species, preserve what there is and  keep some mystery in our native forests.