Before leaving the Marlborough Sounds, I had found two Little Penguins chilling on the water and a great number of Spotted Shags, White-fronted Terns, Australasian Gannets, Fluttering Shearwaters and Kelp and Red-billed Gulls feeding frenetically. Heading out into the open water in amazingly calm conditions, it did not take long for some great pelagic seabirds to begin to appear. Several Mollymawks flew past, sadly too distant for identification, shortly followed by a close Northern Giant Petrel. Fulmar Prions, a species I last saw off Stewart Island in 2006, began to follow the ferry, with at least 45 of them gliding low and elegantly over the ship's wake. A resplendent Northern Royal Albatross glided effortlessly over the deck, allowing breathtaking views, while a Gibson's Wandering Albatross and several Buller's (again a bird I last saw in Stewart Island nine years' ago!) and White-capped Albatrosses were flushed by the approaching boat. On top of these, a Westland Petrel and two Sooty Shearwaters (a challenge tick) were also seen. What a fantastic crossing!
I reached Wellington in the early evening, and headed up to Rotorua the next morning. The trip included a half-hour stop-off in Taupo. I headed straight down to the lakeside, in search of a potential lifer. Virtually immediately, I came upon a pair of New Zealand Grebes, shortly followed by three more pairs. It was soon time to run back to catch my bus, but it had been incredibly satisfying to find another lifer endemic to New Zealand! I had much closer views of this bird the next day on Lake Rotorua.
New Zealand Grebe on Lake Rotorua
Other birds seen on the lake an absolutely immense flock of New Zealand Scaups, accompanied by large of flocks of three invasive species- Greylag Geese, Black Swans and Mallards.
Black Swan on Lake Rotorua. This magnificent Australian species was introduced to New Zealand for hunting in 19th Century, and has flourished, with over 60 000 birds probably now present.
The following day, I headed to the stunning Rotorua Redwood Forest
Rotorua Redwoods, what an extraordinary place! Sadly it was very quiet from a birding perspective, with Tui, Silverye, New Zealand Fantail and Grey Gerygone being the only native species seen here.
It was then time to head north again, this time to Auckland. While passing through the southern suburbs of New Zealand's biggest city (remarkably home to a third of the country's population!), I saw several Spotted Doves, an Asian introduction, which, unlike in Australia, has remained relatively scarce in New Zealand. This was my first sighting of the species in the country, and it was accompanied by numerous Common Mynas, another Asian invasive.
On the 2nd December, I caught the ferry from Auckland to Tiritiri Matangi Island. This remarkable island is completely predator-free, and consequently numerous native bird species have been translocated to there, in an attempt to secure their future. When I visited back in 2006, I was truly blown away, and this trip was certainly no different!
On the journey over to the island, I saw numerous White-fronted Terns, Australasian Gannets, Fluttering Shearwaters and, unquestionably best of all, six Arctic Skuas. This species breeds in north Eurasia and northern North America. The individuals seen in New Zealand are believed to breed in the Siberian tundra, meaning that every year they carry out a truly remarkable migration spanning the entire length of the Pacific Ocean and back. What an extraordinary creature!
As we approached the Tiritiri, the sound of numerous melodic songbirds filled the air. Tui and New Zealand Bellbirds whistled tunefully from every tree, Red-crowned Parakeets squawked, Whiteheads, Sacred Kingfishers and North Island Saddlebacks shrieked and North Island Robins chattered from the undergrowth. It felt like stepping back in time to a pre-human New Zealand.
Red-crowned Parakeet on Tiritiri Matangi. This bird was once widespread across both the North and South Islands, however European arrival led to a drastic contraction in its range. Nowadays it is near-extinct on mainland New Zealand, however the species is booming on the predator-free islands to which it has been translocated.
Tui on Tiritiri. What amazing birds!
New Zealand Bellbird on Tiritiri. Thankfully, like the Tui, this member of the Honeyeater family managed to adapt to European settlement in New Zealand and remains common on the mainland
The same cannot be said for this species, the North Island Saddleback, which became extinct on the mainland approximately 110 years ago, but thankfully survives on these predator-free islands.
North Island Robin on Tiritiri
Heading deeper into the forest, I was extremely pleased to come across several Stitchbirds. This stunning black-white-and-yellow bears a strong resemblance to the Honeyeaters, however it is not closely related to them and is now classified as being in its own family. It became extinct on the mainland and on most offshore islands towards the end of the 19th Century. Thankfully, a small population survived on nearby Little Barrier Island, and in the 1980's, a number of birds were taken to Tiritiri Matangi. Though it remains relatively scarce on the island, it appears to be doing quite well and attempts to reintroduce birds from Tiritiri to the North Island have resulted in some success. I certainly hope this species continues its comeback from the brink of extinction!
Whiteheads became truly abundant deeper into the forest. Once again, this stunning species was once abundant across the mainland of the North Island. European arrival, and the clearing of forests and introduction of rodents and mustelids that came with it, caused a rapid decline in its population. The bird was brought to Tiritri Matangi in 1989 and has now apparently become the most common species on the island.
New Zealand Pigeons, Silvereyes and Grey Gerygones were the other native species common in the forest. Of course, being New Zealand, invasive species were also present in high numbers. House Sparrows, European Goldfinches, Common Starlings, Common Blackbirds and Song Thrushes represented European introductions, while Common Mynas from Asia and Australian Magpies were also common. I was pleased to find another Australian introduction in high numbers around the island, the fantastic Brown Quail. This bird was first brought over to New Zealand for hunting in the 1860's. Though it has flourished in the northern part of the North Island, this was the first time I had seen the species in the country. Approximately ten years' ago, there was some speculation that the birds present on Tiritiri Matangi Island may in fact be a remnant population of the extinct New Zealand Quail. Sadly genetic-testing proved this not to be the case.
Brown Quails on Tiritiri Matangi
The Australian Magpie, brought to New Zealand in 1864 in order to control pests, is now a serious pest in the country itself.
Tiritiri Matangi Island is perhaps best known for its population of Takahes. This flightless prehistoric Gallinule species was believed to be extinct, before it was extraordinarily rediscovered in the south of the South Island in 1948. It was then translocated to several offshore islands in the 1980's. It has remained rare, with only approximately 260 birds in existence, however thankfully it does seem as though its future is at least secure. Sadly I didn't have a repeat of my previous trip to the island, when I saw the species fantastically well, though I was mildly amused by the sight of about two dozen visitors (remarkably including a guide!) staring at this 'Takahe!':
This bird is in fact an Australasian Swamphen, known as Pukeko in New Zealand. Unlike the Takahe, this bird has the ability to fly and has absolutely boomed in New Zealand since the arrival of Europeans. Fossil evidence appears to suggest that the bird was not present in the country before Maori arrival, and there is speculation that they may have introduced the species. I guess the crowd watching it would have gone home feeling very pleased with themselves!
Another Takahe-impersonator on Tiritiri
I decided to head over to one of the island's small ponds in search of another species that has been translocated to the island. I had a fantastic moment of luck as a New Zealand Fernbird flew right past me and briefly landed next to the pond, allowing fantastic, if a little brief, views of the endemic lifer. This bird was brought to the island in 2001 from its North Island-homeland, which was being destroyed to build a motorway. Like most species brought to the island, this member of the Old World Warbler family has flourished here and there are now several hundred present.
This was, in fact, not the creature I had been searching for, instead an absolutely fantastic bonus sighting! After a brief wait, my target species swum out from the undergrowth:
The Brown Teal, one of the world's rarest ducks with a population of just 2000 birds. It was brought to Tiritiri Matangi in 1987, having been nearly hunted to extinction on the mainland in the early 20th Century, with small remnant populations clinging on in Northland and the Coromandel Peninsula.
I was then forced to head back towards the wharf to catch the return ferry. I was immensely pleased to come across this bird right next to the footpath:
The truly awesome North Island Kokako. A member of the New Zealand Wattlebird family, whose only other extant members are the North and South Island Saddlebacks. Unlike those two, the Kokako still has two tiny remnant populations on the North Island mainland, those being the only remaining members of a family that was once widespread and abundant across both islands still found on the mainland. Weighing a quarter-of-a-kilogram and reaching up to 40cm in length, this huge passerine was an incredibly pleasing lifer for me, and I ended up seeing five of them on my walk back to the wharf. Wow!!
I was lucky to come across one more endemic songbird in the forest, New Zealand's smallest bird, the Rifleman. A small flock of this 8cm-long midget-bird were making their way through the forest undergrowth. It was a great way to end an awesome day in an awesome place! I will definitely return to the island, in order to stay the night and search for Little Spotted Kiwis....
My final destination of the trip was Paihia in the awesome Bay of Islands. On the journey north from Auckland, I saw yet another invasive species, the Eastern Rosella. This turned out to be a very common bird around the Paihia area.
Eastern Rosella in Paihia, this bird was introduced to New Zealand in 1910 and is now abundant and continuing to spread across the North Island
A search of the Paihia-Waitangi Estuary produced some very decent birds, not least five New Zealand Plovers and a Pacific Golden Plover, my first in New Zealand.
New Zealand Plover at Paihia.
Other birds seen on the estuary included at least 25 White-faced Herons, a Pacific Reef Heron, up to 10 Sacred Kingfishers, 13 White-headed Stilts and four Caspian Terns.
Nearby was Waitangi National Reserve. I spent a considerable amount of time exploring this great reserve, though sadly it was once again invasive species that were present in good numbers. Thankfully, New Zealand Fantails, Tui, Silverye and Grey Gerygone were also common, while a Shining Bronze-Cuckoo, just my second sighting in New Zealand, was a very pleasing bird to see.
The reserve is a great location for North Island Brown Kiwis, and consequently I decided to pay it a visit in the late evening on the 7th December, my final night of the trip. Alone and armed with just a basic headlamp, unsurprisingly I had no success in finding this highly secretive and skulking bird, though with numerous Moreporks calling, I decided to try and stalk up on one. After nearly half-an-hour of standing under a tree from which one was calling, I was extremely happy when the bird flew out, giving truly atrocious views of a very special lifer for me. This is New Zealand's only extant native Owl (the Laughing Owl is now extinct and the Little Owl was introduced from Europe), and is found only there and in Tasmania. I went to bed feeling content with my success and was up horrendously early the next morning to head back down to Auckland for my flight home to Brisbane.
The trip, however, was not over yet, as I was lucky enough to spot three Barbary Doves on the drive. This creature has a very complex genetic history, having been domesticated from African Collared Doves in the Middle East several thousand years' ago. Many people believe that the bird is now genetically-distinct from that species, effectively making it a man-made species, though its ability to successfully interbreed with both African and Eurasian Collared Doves suggests that it may not, in fact, be valid as a distinct species. For now, I am counting it as a life tick in the form of African Collared Dove (after all I ticked Rock Dove after seeing Feral Pigeons!), though this may change if more evidence emerges! Numerous Common Pheasants and Canada and Greylag Geese were also seen on the journey. My final bird of the trip was, sadly rather fittingly, another non-native bird, the Wild Turkey, of which I saw a group of four skulking in some roadside grassland. As is the case with such feral birds, it can be difficult to tell if they are truly wild birds, and a strong degree of uncertainty surrounding the wilderness of the area (just outside a small farming town) in which I saw a Helmeted Guineafowl (a species on the official NZ list) on the same drive prevented me from being able to tick it with confidence! These Turkeys were, however, in a seemingly completely wild area and there was nothing to suggest that they were being farmed, making them a final dodgy tick for my trip, finishing with 99 species, including 37 endemic species and 24 introduced birds!
I love birds and try to collect as much information about the species as I can. The birds look great in the natural habitat. Thanks a lot for sharing this:)
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