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From: "John Penhallurick" <>
To: "Birding Aus" <>
Cc: <>,
"Eurobirdnet" <>
Subject: Terrific private trip to New Zealand
Date: Mon, 20 Sep 2004 22:53:31 +1000
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Hi all,
I got back last night from 16 days in New Zealand. My target list =
consisted of 38 main island endemics.
I ended up with 38; not all 38 that I had aimed for (I missed =
Orange-fronted Parakeet. I now realise that that was a pipie dream,
even =
though I was in the best location). But I picked up one endemic (King =
Cormorant/Shag) that I had not expected to see.
I did over 5000 km (that includes two days on Kapiti Island when I did =
not drive!). I had very valuable assistance from Sav Saville of of =
Wrybill Birding Tours and paid him for his =
advice.
With the exception of Grey Warbler, Tui, Bellbird and New Zealand =
Pigeon, all the endemics tend to be at least rare and local.
Key birds with precise locations:
on Kapiti I (contact Note that Kapiti Lodge is
=
on Private Land. To go to the DOC reserve, which covers the majority
of =
the island, you need to apply for a permit (NZ$9) to
=
You can only enter by boat.)
Red-billed Gull Larus scopulinus (Common)
Spotted Cormorant Phalacrocorax punctatus
Kaka Nestor meridionalis (common around the lodge, and will steal your =
food if you eat outside)
Weka Gallirallus australis common around lodge
Red-fronted Parakeet Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae common around lodge
Variable Oystercatcher Haematopus unicolor
Whitehead Mohuoa albicilla common on Kapiti and also at certain sites
on =
mainland
New Zealand Robin Petroica australis (North Island race. I believe the =
OSNZ is going to split the North and South Island forms in its next =
checklist)
Takahe Porphyrio mantelli (common around the lodge, whose lawn is the =
overlap between a pair to the north and a family group of 5 to the
west. =
Frequent fights between males in the two groups)
Little Spotted Kiwi Apteryx owenii There are over 1000 on Kapiti, but =
not a gimme. The second night there, we had strong winds and rain and =
they didn't call at all.
Brown Teal Anas chlorotis There is a small population on the creek near
=
the lodge.
New Zealand Pipit Anthus novaeseelandiae
Tomtit Petroica macrocephala North Island race. I believe the OSNZ is =
going to split the North and South Island forms in its next checklist)
On the Wilkinson Track on the Reserve proper (note you must have a =
permit. You can only enter by boat about 9.30 am and you must leave =
around 4pm so no chance of Brown Kiwi)
12 Saddleback Philesturnus caruncalatus 6 on the lower part of the
track =
and 6 along the track along the coast back to the lodge.
3 Stitchbird Notiomystis cincta 2 males and I female. Seen only at a =
feeding station maintained by DOC about 3/4 of the way up the Wilkinson
=
Track.
I missed Kokako on Kapiti. In the breeding season they move to the =
southern part of the island, accessible only via the Trig Track, which =
was closed when I was there because a terrific storm had felled many =
trees and washed away parts of the track.
Note most of these birds acan also be seen on Tititiri Matangi.
I headed North to the Ruatiti Domain, the most reliable spot for Blue =
Duck Hymenolaimus malacorhynchos.
on Route 4, about 4 km north of Raetihi (or 4 Km south of Tohunga =
Junction, turn west at the sign for Ohura Road signed to Ruatiti
Domain. =
Start looking down on the rocks in the river after about 17 km
1 New Zealand Falcon Falco novaeseelandiae on the road from Waioru to =
Ohakune (route 49) . Note that the NZ Falcon is very rare on the North =
Island, and more common on the South Island. I saw another south of =
Dargaville east of Ruawai while returning from Dargaville
New Zealand Grebe Poliocephalus rufopectus at Tokaanu launching ramp at
=
the sound end of Lake Taupo
also there New Zealand Scaup Aythya novaeseelandiae.
On route 1 7 km north of Taurangi, turn left into Frethy Drive for =
Fernbird Megalurus punctatus
At Miranda east of Auckland on the Firth of Thames
2 Red-breasted Plover Charadrius obscurus
140 Wrybill Anarhynchus frontalis Not a lifer for me but about half the
=
world population!
20 South Island Oystercatcher Haematopus finschi
From Sandspit east of Warkworth I took a water taxi to Beehive Rock =
(cost NZ$50) and saw 1 male Shore Plover Thinornis novaeseelandiae on =
Beehive Rock.Note that because of the rocks around Beehive, the water =
taxi cannot get too close; and as the Shore Plover seems to send a lot =
of time down among the rocks and out of sight, it would be a good idea =
to take a dinghy with you so that you could get to the rock.
Brown Kiwi Apteryx australis North island race at Trounson State Park =
north of Dargaville. the Kiwi spotting trours are run by the manager
of =
the Kauri Coast Top 10 Caravan Park (09 439 0621). He charges $15 and =
normally requires two people.
He told me he sees Kiwi on 50% of his trips (not the 80% mentioned in =
Chambers book. More of this book later!)
I was very lucky in that as soon as we entered the park, we found a
male =
Kiwi feeing quietly on a grassy lawn. Use a red filter on your torch
as =
it upsets the kiwis less.
Then to Pureora. The best place to see Kokako Callaeas cinerea (part =
from Tiritiri) is Mapara Reserve. Go south from Te Kuiti on 3 and after
=
11 km turn south on 4. After 16 km, turn east on Kopaki Road and then =
right (=3D south) on Mapara Road South. Keep going until you see the =
sign for the Reserve with a footbridge over the river nearby. I saw =
three birds at the pint where the trail becomes a loop at the top of
the =
first ridge.The birds responded well to calls.
At Pureora Forest I had my first Yellow-fronted Parakeet Cyanoramphus =
auriceps, and poor views of Rifleman Acanthasitta chloris(north island =
race).
I had incredible luck on the ferry from Wellington to Picton. Normally
=
to see King Cormorant Phalacrocorax carunculatus you need to take a
trip =
up to the northern end of Queen Charlotte Sound, but the tour boats
were =
not running yet.
I had a definite King Cormorant at East Head.
On route 63 in a paddock about 10 km before St Arnaud I had my first =
Black-fronted Terns Chlidonias albostriatus (together with about 20 =
Double-banded Plover Charadrius bicinctus, which of course was not a =
lifer).
Heavy rain set in that afternoon and wrecked birding. The next day I =
visited Lake Kanieri near Hokitika and had 6 Brown Creeper Mohua =
novaeseelandiae on the track to the Lake.
Then I drove back over Arthur's Pass to the Hawdon Valley in search of =
the elusive Orange-fronted (or Malherbe's) Parakeet. This is a tough =
trail. Very wet, often close to a very noisy river. I neither saw nor
=
heard any parrots at all, but I did get my first South Island NZ Robins
=
and South Island Tomtits, likely splits.
While driving back down past the pass, I saw my one and only Kea Nestor
=
notabilis for the trip . I think they are breeding at this time, and =
missing from their usual haunts.
Then a major disappointment. The day was fine, so I went to
Scotchman's =
Creek (The sign the other way reads "Scotsman's Creek"). That wretched
=
book by Chambers states that the Westland Petrels Procellaria =
westlandica fly ashore at 5pm. So I got there at 4.50 and waited...and
=
waited...and waited. Since I wanted to get up to Bullock Creek for the
=
Great Spotted Kiwi Apteryx haasti, I left at about 6.30.
At Bullock Creek, over 3 hours I heard 7 GSK calls, none of them =
near.The NZ race of Southern Boobook were calling all over the place, =
and I had good views of them. So GSK remains a Heard Only bird.
The next morning, I finally had the opportunity to talk to someone who =
knew something about the Westland Petrels. Oh no! he said. The petrels =
come ashore at dusk, not 5pm. They raft offshore then fly in just where
=
you were. If I had been able to get down to the shore I would have
seen =
the rafts, but this was impossible. So, cursing Chambers, I headed =
south.
I stopped at Munro's Beach just north of Haast, and managed good views =
and photos of 4 Fiorldland Crested Penguins Eudyptes pachyrhynchus. A =
warning. The beach is rotten with sandflies. Take lots of repellent!
Next day I stopped at Haast Pass, and walked the Bridle Trail (marked
on =
the sign as Bridal Trail, but I didn't see any brides!).which I was
told =
was the most reliable place in NZ for Yellowhead. No luck, though I did
=
get nice views of South Island Rifleman.
So I did a detour to Glenorchy. The wretched Chambers says that Rock =
Wren (the NZ name for South Island Wren Xenicus gilviventris) can be =
found in the "rock gardens" just over the river, and I was advised to =
dry the start of the Routeburn Track.
I later talked to two local birders, who said they had only ever found =
the South Island Wren near a hut half a day's walk up the Routeburn =
Track. Like so much in Chambers bloody guide, almost everything he
says =
about the South Island Wren is pure fantasy- absolute bullshit!
They did advise me to try the track at Lake Sylvan for Yellowhead, and =
after an hour's walking I had 4 birds who responded great to the calls.
Also in the paddocks on the way to Lake Sylvan, I saw 100 plus =
Black-billed Gull Larus bulleri.
So on to Twizel for the Black Stilt Himantopus novaezelandiae. To cut a
=
long story short, I was eventually advised to try the north shore of =
Lake Pukaki (the turnoff is about 500m north of Glentanner). There I =
found 7 adult stilts and 7 juveniles, more than 10% of the world's
total =
population. I gave fervent thanks to Orni!
Then on to Oamaru, where I found 4 Stewart Island Cormorants, 2 of the =
pied phase and 2 of the bronze phase on the twon's breakwaters, along =
with about 200 Spotted Cormorants. Then to Bushy Beach for Yellow-eyed =
Penguin Megadyptes antipodes, of which I saw 4 Orni again shone her =
favour on me. A Westland petrel flew by about 40 m offshore, then flew =
back again, and then flew by a third time, giving me wonderful scope =
views.
My final day in Dunedin was a total disaster. By the time I reached =
Taiaroa Head, a 90 knot gale was blowing with driving rain and sleet. I
=
was almost blown clear off the head. And I was told: Sorry! you can't =
go out to the hide. It was closed on Sept 16 (this was Sept 18!). So
I =
could only watch 2 chicks of the sanfordi race of Royal Albatross =
Diomedea epomophora via live closed circuit TV.
The final lifer was introduced Lesser Redpoll Carduelis cabaret. It is =
supposedly common in the South island, but as it occurs in open country
=
which I was trversing at 100 Kph, iyt wasn't easy to see. I did finally
=
have good views of both males and females.
Some final thoughts. If you want to bird NZ on your own, I advise you
to =
buy CDs of bird calls from http://www.natureandco.co.nz
There is a 7 CD set. You probably should by 1 (for the Kiwis and 6 and =
7). They may take a while for delivery as they don't appear to have
the =
CDs in stock so order early!
You will not be allowed to play Kiwi calls in places like Kapiti and =
Trounson. But you can play GSK at Bullock's Creek and believe me you'll
=
need it!
Finally to Chamber's Birds of New Zealand: a Locality guide. Use this =
book with great care. There is some good data there. But much of the =
information is wrong, outdated or plain fantasy. For example,
everything =
that he says about South Island Wren apart from Homer Tunnel is pure =
fantasy. Most of his sites for brown Kiwi are worthless, as are most
of =
his sites for Blue Duck. He lists Trounson Park for Kokako, but there =
have been no Kokako there for some 8 years. And he does not mention =
Mapura at all.
I hope you find this both interesting and useful.
Best wishes,
John Penhallurick
John Penhallurick
Home: 86 Bingley Cres,FRASER,A.C.T. 2615,AUSTRALIA
Phone: (61 2) 62585428
Mobile: 0408 585 428
Mail:P.O.Box 3469,BMDC,BELCONNEN, A.C.T. 2617
Please visit my website at:
http://worldbirdinfo.net
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