Your birding guide, Rob Lawrence

I grew up in Washington State, and come from a long family tradition of involvement in wildlife. In fact I've been a birder since I can't remember when! Birding Tours New Zealand was founded from a long-held dream to make a living doing something you enjoy.

Birding as a boy

My father, as a wildlife biologist, stuffed his four-year-old son (me) into stream beaver lodges to get nesting materials for parasite examination. I was destined to have an interest in wildlife and nature!

I spent nearly every daylight hour (and some night hours) in the “woods” behind my family’s home sneaking up on, watching and observing all the animals and birds that inhabited them.

Conservation and wildlife work

Falconry with Kestrels and Owls were some of my youthful activities. I gained early experience in the rehabilitation of injured birds of prey and even a stint as a “conservation activist” through the destruction of the leg traps around a game bird farm to target birds of prey. Thankfully the State Department of Game has become more enlightened and ceased using leg traps. Active in the Audubon Society, Christmas counts and the Oregon Field Ornithologists, I developed a close relationship with birding and environmental issues. My life list grew as I grew older, even during my college days at the University of Washington, winter trips to the Mountlake dump to see the migrating waterfowl and the occasional Snowy Owl escaping the severe Northern winter are strong memories. Click and see a larger picture of myself and my wife in those early days.

My working life has been involved in fisheries, animal health, and conservation work.

Professional work in 'wild' New Zealand

Immigrating to New Zealand from Oregon in 1984 to assist with the New Zealand Salmon Company, a whole new world of birds was opened.

Photo courtesy The Press

This continued as the Animal Manager for Orana Park Wildlife Trust where I was responsible for the native collection management, and even made the press occasionally. This provided opportunity to work with other Zoos and agencies such as New Zealand Department of Conservation ( DOC) , CMAG (Conservation Management Action Group). I served as the Species Coordinator for the Grand Skink Oligosoma grande and the Yellowhead Mohoua ochrocephala. Orana Park working with Peacock Springs, DOC and WWF the first attempt was undertaken at a captive breeding programme for Mohoua which gained valuable experience on the rearing and husbandry of this threatened species. I had the privilege of hand-raising North Island and South Island Kaka Nestor meridionalis which had been rescued from stoat predated nests in the Nelson Lakes area of the South Island.

The experience of a life-time

Photo courtesy The Press

These experiences have had a profound effect and appreciation on me for the fragile state of many of New Zealand birds, like this kaka.

Birding Tours New Zealand is a way of sharing my lifelong passion for birds and nature. New Zealand is a special place and the birdlife and environment have suffered severely from the effects of Humans.

To have seen this place before the arrival of man would have been truly amazing but we can't change history only learn from it. But many places still remain relatively untouched and to experience the beauty and grace of this land is an experience of a lifetime.