New Zealand birdwatching

White Kotuku (credit: SidPix)

Spend some time out and discover the wonderful and unique bird life on the islands of New Zealand on this discovery packed birdwatching tour. There’s lots of bird species that can only be found in New Zealand and the country’s national parks have lots to offer.

New Zealand birdwatching tour.

The bird watching tour covers a whole range of habitats that can be found in New Zealand from sub-alpine to low land forest and onto wetlands. There’s lots to keep even the most avid birdwatcher on their toes as we journey around the South Island.

There can be some quite steep walks – but taken at a leisurely pace – as we explore the local mountains such as Mount Arthur and Mount Campbell with it’s beech forests. We will also spend time birdwatching in the Kahurangi National Park.

Kahurangi National Park birdwatching.

Kahurangi National Park is New Zealand second largest national park and is found in the north of South Island. A community lead trapping programme to eradicate introduced predators is currently underway and work is taking place to encourage back the unique flora and fauna that is currently under threat.

Day-by-day itinerary

Day 1: Mount Arthur.
A good path takes us on a 2 hour walk up Mount Arthur to give excellent views across the Tasmin Bay and Kahunrangi National Park. There will be a visit to a conservation trapping project to discover more about local conservation activities.

The night is spent at a private cabin situated on the outskirts of the national park. The cabin has views across Tasmin Bay and a very friendly parrot.

Today’s birds sighting could include some or all of:

Kea,
Kaka,
Robin,
Bellbird,
Brown Creeper,
Blue Duck,
Rifleman,
Kakariki,
Tui.

Day 2: Mount Cambell.
Mount Cambell has an incredible beech forest that leads up to alpine habitat. It’s found in the north of the Kahuranga National Park. The day is spent on the mountain where we can discover a good range of birds and also take in some excellent views .

The evening is spent back at the cabin on the slopes of Mount Arthur.

Today’s bird sightings could include;

Kea,
Harrier Hawk,
Falcon,
Bellbird,
Tomtit,
Kakariki.

Day 3: Cobb Valley.
Our next accommodation is at an exclusive cottage next to a small reservoir in the picturesque Cobb Valley. In order to get there we will need to take a scenic drive over the fascinating Takaka Hill which is also known as Marble Mountain. The hill is made up of fascinating limestones and marbles and well worth a short visit.

After arriving at and settling into the cottage we will spend the afternoon on a birdwatching walk around the reservoir.

Day 4: Cobb Valley.
There’s lots of walks around the Cobb Valley that we can go on that will give us some excellent birdwatching. You can select from a range of valley walks or spend time exploring the bird life of alpine lake habitat.

We spend the night at the cottage on the shores of the reservoir.

Today’s and yesterday bird sightings could include some of the following:

Kaka,
Kea,
Falcon,
Scaup & Paradise ducks,
Robin,
Grey Warbler.

Day 5: Mangarakau.
We head through the Takaka Valley along the West Coast to Mangarakau. Here we will stay at a lodge operated by a local conservation project. The lodge is surrounded by wetlands and this gives us the opportunity to discover some of New Zealand’s water fowl.

The lodge is situated on the edge of a lake and this gives us an ideal base to explore the area. If we are lucky we may also hear the bitterns calling as night falls.

Bird sightings today could include:

Tui,
Pukeko,
Kingfisher,
Fernbird,
Grey duck,
Scaup.

Day 6: Mangarakau.
We have a choice of walks and bird watching sites to choose from today which are within easy reach of our lakeside lodge. Depending on the weather and other conditions the walks could include tidal habitat, wetland habitat or explore the bird life of Knuckle Hill.

We stay overnight again at the conservation projects lakeside lodge.

Bird sightings today can vary depending on the walks that we do but should include some of the following;

Cormorants,
Spoonbills,
Herons,
White Kotuku,
gulls.

Day 7: Motueka.
On our way back to Motueka and the end of this packed 7 day birdwatching tour of New Zealand we stop at Farewell Spit. A local guide will take you on a birdwatching trip along the sandspit where you could spot any of the following birds and more;