There are some interesting birds here in New Zealand, many of them black in color. The dark blue/black Tui bird has two white glandular looking tufts on its neck under which lie two separate voice boxes from which over hundreds of sounds emerge and which are described as a complicated mix of tuneful notes including coughs, grunts, wheezes, chimes, whistles, rattles, clicks and gongs. Can you imagine the racket these guys create in your backyard at dawn and dusk? The dark blue/black Pukeko resembles a long legged chicken, has a red head/beak, orange legs and a violet throat/breast. They live and amble around in small groups in marshy grassy areas ground feeding. Eggs are laid in a communal nest with the entire group raising the offspring. Another interesting shore bird is the black Variable Oystercatcher who has both orange eyes and a long thin orange beak. They shuffle around the incoming tide boring for food in the sand and are quite comical to watch. There are also Eurasian Blackbirds, Black Robins, Black Shag, Black Stilt, Black & White Magpies, the list goes on. Last, but certainly not forgotten, is the nocturnal Kiwi. So far, we have just seen them in museum displays but we are hoping for a sighting. Many of these birds, including the Kiwi, are flightless birds who nest on the ground making them vulnerable to rats, possums and weasels.
While on the east coast of the North Island (south of Napier) we went on a tour to Cape Kidnappers to observe a Gannet Colony. Several small all terrain buses took us up and through the most beautiful mountainous countryside I have ever seen. Several farm (station) owners donated some of their grazing land to form a preserve which the buses slowly made their way through ending at an isolated majestic seaside cliff area where the largest mainland Gannet Colony in the world resides. They resemble large white seagulls on steroids with yellow caramel colored heads and long black bills. Their wingspan exceeds six feet and watching them return from feeding and circle the cliffs searching for their lone chick amongst the large colony of young and old alike is nothing short of spectacular. Their bodies are adept at deep diving to fish and lacking brood patches use their large webbed feet to warm their solo egg. After four months of growth and development along with significant wing exercises, the chicks significantly outweigh their parents. One by one, they take off over the cliffs and make their difficult flight to Australia which takes them 10 days and is where they stay for several years before, those that survive, make their way back to Cape Kidnappers as mature adults to join the breeding colony. They have many interesting social and feeding rituals too complex to discuss here so for all the bird lovers out there, I suggest you read more about them online or at least take a look at their beauty via images.
We are now on the Kapiti Coast, the southwestern side of the North Island, which is known as the bird capital of New Zealand. The Kapiti Island Nature Preserve is New Zealand’s oldest nature preserve where some of the rarest and most endangered birds can be seen in their natural habitat on this predator free island. Only two companies take small tour groups to the island, which we booked on a Sunday morning.
About two dozen people were loaded in a small boat, in a parking lot, which was already on a trailer hooked up to a large tractor. The sides of the boat were covered with plastic so you couldn’t see much until both the boat and trailer hit the water at what seemed like breakneck speed, but that’s wasn’t the worst of it. The boat then broke loose from the trailer and started heaving in large choppy waves with swells breaking over the boat. Of course, my immediate response was to scream, bloody murder. To be fair, the boat driver did mention something about a free rollercoaster ride that would accompany the morning tour. We rocked and rolled during our 20 minute ride out to Kapiti Island where getting off the boat was another harrowing experience. After several positioning rounds in the boat we backed toward the shore where a large metal gangway attached to the back of the boat rumbled onto the rough pebbled beach and we were told to quickly disembark. Whew! A small walk took us to a covered visitor area where a guide talked about the history of the island/reserve along with the ins and outs of bringing various indigenous bird species back from the brink of extinction. I chose to do a 2.5 hour hike and Paul chose the 3.5 hour hike, giving him the opportunity to reach the summit and get 360 degree ocean views. My hips were not happy coming down so I am grateful I erred on the side of caution rather than valor. I won’t bore you with the details, but there were lots of happy chirping birds swooping/flying/flitting/fleeting and hopping around in the thick forest on the island. Because they don’t have any natural predators on the island they are quite unafraid which lends itself to close up views of many rare species which were all new to us. I could go on and on about the birds but have reached my word limit so will sign off. 2019
Next, we are off to the New Zealand capital city of Wellington on the south end of the north island, after which our time on the south island begins.