BIRDING NEW ZEALAND DAY 6: Stewart Island to Te Anau

Our 6th day in New Zealand consisted mainly of driving. Early in the morning, we woke up, had our breakfast and took the 8 am ferry to Invercargill. Here, we rented a new car from the airport, ate some food and began the drive to Te Anau. Bird-wise we didn't really see much, until we were about 10 kilometres from Te Anau. A roadside reserve held a breeding colony of lifer black-billed gulls, along with New Zealand scaup, white-naped stilts, grey teal and Paradise shelducks.

White-naped stilts colonised New Zealand from Australia

The grey teal is another Australian bird also found in New Zealand

Black-billed gulls are endemic to New Zealand and closely related to silvergulls

As the name suggests, the New Zealand scaup is also endemic to New Zealand

As there was still plenty of time left before it would get dark, we decided to drive a short distance up the Milford Sound Road. First, we stopped at Mistletoe Lake and did a short walk. There were many New Zealand bellbirds, house sparrows and chaffinches here. Our next stop was Mirror Lake. On the way, we saw a flock of distant lifer black-fronted terns hunting over a paddock, along with some yellowhammers. As we neared Mirror Lakes we were treated to breathtaking views of the Eglinton Valley.

A blurry shot of some endemic black-fronted terns

The yellowhammer was introduced to New Zealand from Britain

There seemed to be beautiful views wherever we looked in Fiordland

Unfortunately, while at Mirror Lakes the weather turned for the worse and we weren't treated with the views we'd hoped for. We decided to return tomorrow.

BIRDING NEW ZEALAND DAY 5: Stewart Island

Today was mainly to be a day of relaxing, however we had booked a Patterson Inlet wildlife cruise (again with Furhana of Ruggedy Ranges) as the weather was too calm for a pelagic to be productive. We first approached a group of red-billed gulls, kelp gulls and white-fronted terns hovering over the water, feeding on fish. Close inspection revealed some distant spotted shags, as well as several rafts of little blue penguins.

This little blue penguin was one of many we saw on the cruise

We then headed out to sea, past a lighthouse and towards Sarah's Cove. On the way, our skipper, Kevin, spotted a distant white-capped albatross. Using some fish Furhana had brought to attract birds, we managed to lure it near our boat. A second, juvenile white-capped albatross soon appeared and both birds gave us spectacular views.

The white-capped albatross is one of 3 species recently split from the shy albratross

You can tell this bird is an adult because its bill has a bright yellow tip

Though small for an albatross, white-capped albatrosses still have large wingspans

We then entered Sarah's Cove and watched for Fiordland crested penguins, though none were seen. On the way to the next site, a lifer Buller's albatross flew past the boat. The fish came in handy again, as we were able to lure it near the boat. The white-capped albatrosses from the previous feeding realised what was going on and also flew in.

A Buller's albatross flies past the Stewart Island coastline

The yellow-black bill and grey head show this bird is a Buller's albatross

The white-capped (left) and Buller's albatrosses (right) swimming together

Our next stop was a large rocky islet protruding from the sea and alive with birds. Two endemic spotted shags perched on one side of the rock, while a stunning Stewart Island shag scanned the sea from the top. White-fronted terns, kelp gulls and red-billed gulls were all perched atop the right-hand side of the rock. Finally, a white-throated phase little pied cormorant was drying its wings on the far end.

The spotted shag on the right's crest shows it has entered breeding phase

Though also found in Australia, the stronghold of the white-fronted tern is New Zealand

The white-throated form of the little pied cormorant is unique to New Zealand

The Stewart Island shag has two forms: the pied form (shown here) and a bronze form

Our second-last stop was the Snuggery, an area of Ulva Island where pied cormorants, little black cormorants and little pied cormorants breed. The area was alive with activity. Many of the large cormorant nests still held a chick. We even got to see some parents feeding their young by regurgitating into their throats.

The pied cormorant is another bird commoner in Australia than New Zealand

We cruised by the Bravo Islands looking for yellow-eyed penguin, but were not successful. We then returned to the island, where we relaxed for the rest of the day. The only event of note bird-wise was near dinner, when I observed a kelp gull trying to eat a sea star it had caught.

The kelp gull is abundant in New Zealand, but quite uncommon in Australia

BIRDING NEW ZEALAND DAY 4: Stewart and Ulva Islands

I woke up at about 6 am, interested in scanning the lodge's grounds for birds. Tui were present everywhere I looked, sharing the shrubs with introduced blackbirds, house sparrows and dunnocks. High-pitched calls alerted me to the presence of a New Zealand fantail. The star of the morning were multiple kaka: 3 birds used to being fed by humans flew up to the terrace and put on quite a show! Unfortunately, feeding the birds isn't very good for them and is therefore frowned upon.

The New Zealand fantail was recently split from Australia's grey fantail

Kaka on Stewart Island are very slightly brighter in colour than South Island birds

After eating a delicious breakfast at the Stewart Island Lodge, we were picked up at 9 am by Furhana of Ruggedy Range Guided Walks (http://www.ruggedyrange.com) for an Ulva Island tour. We spent roughly 4 hours walking around the island, during which we saw a myriad of birds. South Island robins, red-crowned parakeet, weka, New Zealand bellbird, brown creeper and tomtit were common all over the island. Near the end of our walk, we stumbled across a large feeding flock of yellowhead, in which there were several South Island saddleback and a single rare yellow-crowned parakeet. We were lucky enough to see a roosting morepork as well. We even heard the calls of a southern tokoeka! We wouldn't have seen half of these birds without Furhana's help and I highly recommend her as a guide.

The morepork is another endemic recently split from its Australian cousin

Weka are very inquisitive birds: several strolled right up to us and inspected us

The tomtit is a close relative of Australia's robins

South Island robins on Stewart Island have darker upperparts

This red-crowned parakeet perched in a tree right next to the trail

Yellowhead have been introduced to Ulva Island due to their rarity

Young South Island saddlebacks are known as jackbirds

Though blurry, this is the best shot I could manage of the yellow-crowned parakeet

We then headed back to Stewart Island. We rested for most of the day, however when we head down to the hotel for dinner I managed to photograph a pair of paradise shelduck swimming in the waters of Halfmoon Bay.

The female paradise shelduck is far prettier than the male

We then took a Bravo Adventures kiwi-spotting tour (http://www.kiwispotting.co.nz) lead by Phillip Smith. These tours have had a 6 year success rate and we were not disappointed. On the ferry in, we saw some distant Stewart Island shags, a New Zealand fur seal and some little penguins. Once we'd arrived, we walked a trail towards a beach where we got great views of 2 southern tokoeka. We also heard several moreporks calling.

As flash is (for obvious reasons) not allowed, this was the best photo I got of the tokoeka

BIRDING NEW ZEALAND DAY 3: Invercargill to Stewart Island

The morning began just as the forecast said it would: cloudy and rainy. Thankfully, as we were eating breakfast the rain cleared up, allowing us to see tui, New Zealand bellbird and silvereye at close range from a nearby feeder. We decided to do one last fernbird walk, just after the rain ended. This was extremely successful: by whistling them in we got close views of 4 fernbirds, one of which was just sitting on the trail!

This fernbird was far more trusting than the warblers of other countries

We checked out of the B&B and briefly visited the Southland Museum to look at Henry, the 110-year-old tuatara. We had lunch, dropped our rental car off at the Invercargill airport and then took a shuttle to the Stuart Island ferry's departure point. On the jetty, multiple kelp gulls, red-billed gulls, great cormorants and little pied cormorants could be seen. At 4:30 the ferry left. The conditions were extremely calm, but even so I saw several distant white-capped albatrosses and many lifer common diving-petrels. We also saw a medium-sized penguin swimming on the waves, but it dove before we could identify it.

This common diving-petrel came quite close to our boat before diving down

When we arrived at Stewart Island it was 5pm. We checked in to Stewart Island Lodge and walked down to get dinner at the South Sea Hotel. On the way, we saw several kaka, many tuis, 2 paradise shelducks and some variable oystercatchers.

BIRDING NEW ZEALAND DAY 2: Dunedin to Invercargill

On our second day, after viewing the inside of Lanarch Castle, we decided to visit the Dunedin Royal Albatross Centre. Here, we booked a guided tour at 10:30 pm. The tour took us up to an observatory, from which we saw a young Northern royal albatross at close range. As we watched the first bird, we also saw a few more albatross flying around the Tairoa Head lighthouse. After the tour was done we visited the boardwalk near the centre, which gave distant views of a spotted shag colony. We had lunch in the Centre's cafe and then began the 2-hour drive to Invercargill, on which we saw 25 swamp harriers.  

This Northern royal albatross was sitting down and enjoying the sunshine

We arrived in Invercargill at around 4pm. We made our way to the Bushy Point Fernbirds B&B. The feeders at the B&B were alive with tui and New Zealand bellbirds. A ball of seeds held on a stick in front of the dining area was being swarmed by silvereyes. 

Tui were extremely common on the property

The silvereyes on New Zealand are of the Tasmanian subspecies

Because the weather tomorrow was forecasted to be cold and rainy, we decided that we'd do our guided fernbird walk today. Ian, our host, took us out onto the property. As we walked towards the marsh where the fern birds live, we saw a New Zealand fantail and heard some grey warblers. When we got to the marsh, Ian taught us that by whistling the fernbird's two-note call, you can easily bring them in. He demonstrated, bringing in a single lifer fernbird at close range. While walking the trail we also saw several of them flying over the marsh. Some paradise shelducks were also flying overhead, along with a lone swamp harrier.

The fernbird is New Zealand's only species of warbler

BIRDING NEW ZEALAND DAY 1: Dunedin

I recently travelled to New Zealand. Most of the trip was spent on the South Island, though we also spent 3 days in Wellington for a conference. The trip began in Dunedin, where we stayed at the Lanarch Castle. The castle had large gardens which I explored in the morning. Some of the commoner New Zealand endemics were visible here. A feeder near the castle was home to many New Zealand bellbirds. In flowering trees, distant tui could be seen: a lifer for me. Finally, several New Zealand pigeons were flying around the property. Several introduced species were also present: house sparrow, chaffinch, blackbird, Eurasian starling and song thrush all being seen.

The New Zealand pigeon is often seen while driving in the New Zealand countryside

New Zealand bellbirds are extremely common, we saw them often during the trip

Our first stop of the day was the Orokonui Ecosanctuary, about 30 minutes drive from the castle. We started walking along the kaka trail at about 9:30 am. The feeders were alive with bellbirds and tui. After about a minute of waiting, a feeding flock of magnificent lifer kaka swept through the area, giving us our first views of the endemic parrot. We then headed towards the Robin Valley Trail. We stood along the first third of the trail and silently waited. A flock of distant lifer brown creepers made their way through the canopy. Eventually, our target, a lifer South Island robin, flew down and briefly checked us out. On the way back, a male tomtit perched near the path and allowed close views.

The kaka on South Island are slightly more colourful than their North Island cousins

Tui gave us great views at the sanctuary's many feeders   

 The male tomtit has a beautiful yolk-yellow wash to his chest

A horrible shot of one of the brown creepers at Robin Valley

We got lunch in Dunedin, then drove back to the castle. After a few minutes rest, we went to Penguin Place for a 3 o'clock tour. While walking past several little penguins, we saw New Zealand fur seals hauled up on the rocks. Variable oystercatchers were common here. We walked down to an area of trenches, from which we observed a pair of yellow-eyed penguins. Just before heading back, we scanned the beach for birds and managed to see a yellow-eyed penguin rise from the water and walk across the beach.

A pair of variable oystercatchers stares down a young New Zealand fur seal

Jim and Maggie are the names of these two yellow-eyed penguins

A yellow-eyed penguin strides slowly across the beach

A NIGHT AT LITTLE DESERT

After learning that birders had previously seen barn owls in the Little Desert area, my family and I decided to travel there for a night.
We arrived at Little Desert Nature Lodge at around 6 pm. On inquiry, we found out that some of the staff had also seen the owls. We decided to look for them on the way to get dinner, not really thinking that we'd be lucky enough to find anything. About 6 kilometres from the lodge, I spotted the characteristic ghostly white form of a barn owl hunting over a paddock. Over the rest of the night we viewed many of the birds close up from our car, as well as spotting 2 tawny frogmouths and a swift Australian owlet-nightjar crossing the road.

Despite the many barn owls we encountered, I was still only able to get this photo

This tawny frogmouth stood still and allowed us to take plenty of pictures

The next morning we walked the Nature Trail of the Little Desert Lodge. The bush was alive with birds. Commoner species such as New Holland honeyeaters, red wattlebirds, laughing kookaburras and yellow-rumped thornbills were seen, along with white-throated treecreepers, scarlet robins and 2 lifers: weebills and yellow-plumed honeyeaters. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a good picture of the weebills, though I managed a distant shot of a honeyeater. Many Western grey kangaroos were present as well. Finally, we got a look at the lodge's resident emu, George.

This yellow-plumed honeyeater stood still just long enough for me to photograph it

In contrast, the multitude of yellow-rumped thornbills allowed far better photography

George the emu's booming call could be heard throughout our walk

Western grey kangaroos are, to my knowledge, the only kangaroos in Little Desert

It was a great trip and I hope to visit Little Desert again.