NEW ZEALAND BIRDS

BIRDS / AOTEAROA

The Tui 

It’s hard to explain the sounds this honeyeater carries on with, sometimes like a bell clanging, or like rocks banging, squawks, and sometimes a very sweet song, or a long symphony with all of it and you must stop what you are doing and listen!  They were sometimes called Parson birds because of the white feathers at the throat.

Tui silhouette

The Fantail – Piwakawaka

These adorable little buggers are harder to capture than a butterfly, they hop and jump from branch to branch and even if they sit for more than a nano second, they shiver or twitch (which results in a blurry pic).  Our Perth friend graciously sent a couple shots taken with his big ass camera! Thank you Andrew.

Still but quivering

A Astle fantail

Black Swans

Even through these guys are originally from Western Australia, I so loved the black swans.  Quite sorry I didn’t get them in flight as the back of the wings are white and they are very dramatic on air.

Cygnet – black or white, young swans start out gray and the red bill comes later

Swan with gull

Red Bill Gull - Tarapunga

This small gull was everywhere, from the parks in Auckland to every beach and body of water we saw.  So, we were a little surprised to learn their numbers are declining.

This youngster was very uncertain in his behavior. Like the swan, his bill (and feet) are still dark. So cute

Oyster catchers - Torea

More than once I had Gil screech to a halt when I had not seen a bird before, ever!

A pair in the grass, resting before the evening feed?

Working the beach

Coot

We have seen these guys all over the world.  Though the one we have in Hawaii has evolved into an endemic, they all look the same without a microscope.

Purple Swamphen – Pukeko

This one behaves like our Hawaiian Moorhen but is much larger and more colorful, its white butt not visible here

They can fly but seem to prefer running

Pied Stilt

Pretty little long legged guys, again similar to our Hawaiian Stilt

Shag and Pied Shag

NZ seemed full of black and white birds the first week, when these cormorants fly their white face and throat were opposite the black swan with its white back wings.  Frustrating - could never catch either flying!

Black (chest) at Lake Rotorua

Another black at Haruru

Pied with white chest, going for the finish line at the canoe races in Lake Pupuke

Pied with white chest, early morning feed in Lake Taupo

Paradise Ducks

Female has more dramatic white head, these were out for an the early morning steam bath

Male

Black Teal, NZ Scaup, or Papango

Little endemic ducks just continue doing their doings regardless of what is happening around them; these were in a harbor.

Classic rubber ducky shape, quite charming

Australian Magpie

While this one was in a park, we saw them more often in the countryside

Spur Wing Plover

This was another car stopper!

Yellow Rump Warbler

Tiny little guy jumping around in the flax, I think I got the name right

Black Bird

Even common birds can be quite lovely

So, the list of what we saw and didn’t capture is even longer.  Wood pigeons and kingfishers were on the wire as we drove but couldn’t pull over.  Same with various herons flying by.  We could have taken hawks eating carrion on the road but that was just gross (though I do like to see them in the air).  We saw a couple blue birds zoom past us.  Of course, we missed the gannets at Kidnappers Cove and didn’t get to the South Island to see either penguins or albatrosses. Never saw the Morepork - a little native owl.

We only heard the Brown Kiwi in the Northland, and there is some debate whether the South Island Brown Kiwi is a separate species or not.  There are several other species, Gray, Spotted (large and small) – all nocturnal, flightless birds that lay eggs that would seem impossible for their size. Conservation of the forests extends to all these funny little guys and if there is one thing about Aotearoa that is really heartwarming, it is their conservation effort.  That’s why we call the people Kiwis.