Delightful birds you will see when birding in New Zealand

Here are some of the special birds we will show you with Birding Tours New Zealand. They are also some of my favourites. (See note 1 below)

Wrybill
Anarhynchus frontalis
The Wrybill is unique among all birds in that the bill tip is bent 15 to 20 degrees to the right. This is an adaptation for reaching under stones in the river environment of its breeding grounds. This small wader is endemic. A birding delight.

Kaka, Nestor meridionalis, forest cousin of the alpine Kea, this species is under serious threat from stoat predation. Kaka prefers an old growth forest habitat. They are vocal and capable of a wide range of calls and whistles. It is less social than the Kea; often solitary or in pairs. Careful and quiet observation of Fiordland forests will often yield the sighting of Kakas.

Blue Duck, Hymenolaimus malacorhynchus, known by the Maöri name Whio, reflecting its call. It occupies the niche in fast flowing mountain streams that a Water Ouzel does in North America or Torrent Ducks do in South America. It is uncommon to rare in its range, and a sighting is an excellent birding achievement. Introduced salmonids compete with this species for aquatic insects. They are extremely territorial and defend their area vigorously against trespassers.

Black Stilt, Himantopus novaezelandiae is also known as Kaki. This species is perhaps one of the rarest waders in the world. It is seriously threatened by habitat destruction and predation by cats on the gravel bars of the breeding streams of inland central South Island. This species frequently hybridises with the Pied Stilt, Himantopus leucocephalus. That it is potentially being genetically overwhelmed by this hybridisation may be the biggest threat faced by the Black Stilt.

Yellowhead, Mohoua ochrocephala, or Mohoua, is one of the most subtly beautiful birds of the South Island beech forests, and very rewarding for birders. The distribution of this species is a fraction of its former extent due to heavy predation from stoats. A gender discrepancy often occurs as females have a higher mortality than males during the incubation period. The attempts to breed these species in captivity have not yet achieved success. The knowledge of husbandry and captive management has improved, but without effective predator control these species will not survive in the wild.

Yellow-eyed Penguin, Megadyptes antipodes, is perhaps the world’s rarest penguin species. The most solitary of the penguins, it breeds in dense shrubbery well apart in sight and sound from other nesting pairs. It is the only penguin with yellow eyes, and the yellow band on the back of the head is distinctive. Hoiho is the Mäori name.

Little Owl, Athene noctua, was introduced from Europe in 1906 to curb the effects of other introduced passerines. Unfortunately, they prefer insects and mice. They are diurnal in habit and birders will often see them in daylight hours sitting on fence posts in open country. The native Morepork, or Ruru, can also be seen on birding tours, but prefers forested areas.

Note 1
Field Guide to New Zealand Wildlife. Terence Lindsey and Rod Morris