The country is well known for its strategy of protecting its wildlife and flora from species introduced from abroad, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is to relax these rules to combat the reed Arundo donax, otherwise known as elephant grass or giant reed, New Zealand Herald reports . The government agency has approved a scheme where two species of insect from the Mediterranean will be introduced to New Zealand's northernmost Northlands region where the reed, which can grow up to 8m (26ft) tall, is displacing native plants and causing flooding.