New Zealand is well known for its plethora of endemic bird species, found no where else in the world. New Zealand broke off from Gondwanaland before mammals evolved so our bird species learned to thrive in niches usually reserved by mammals on the other continents (the only native mammals to New Zealand are the short-tailed and long-tailed bat). Many of the birds, unfortunately now extinct, evolved into 'giants' (hence the term 'gigantism'), filling the role of mega-herbivores in New Zealand (some of Africa's mega-herbivores are elephants and giraffes, for example). A classic example of gigantism is the now extinct moa (maw-a), a huge bird over 3m tall hunted to extinction by the first Polynesians to New Zealand, the Maori people.
New Zealand still has a number of large birds, including the Royal Albatross - a magnificent seabird with a wingspan of 3m. The only mainland nesting colony in the world is found on the Otago Peninsula, a 40min drive from the southern city of Dunedin. New Zealand also has the world's largest rail called the takahe (ta-ka-hay), a flightless bird once thought extinct until rediscovered in remote Fiordland in 1948. The world's largest, and rarest parrot - the kakapo, is also a resident New Zealander and is subject to intensive conservation efforts with around 80 birds extant and scattered throughout New Zealand on small, remote, predator-free islands.
One of our more fascinating bird species is the kiwi (also used as a colloquialism for a New Zealander) - a bird that lays an egg 1/3 of it's own size, is almost blind and has nostrils at the end of a very long beak for sniffing out juicy invertebrates amongst the forest floor leaf litter. Unfortunately our national emblem is also endangered due to loss of habitat and its eggs and young falling prey to introduced predators such as feral cats, stoats and rats.
Walking through our forests you are likely to hear and see a number of native birds including the tui, bellbird, fantail, wood pigeon, robins, parrots, and many others. Along the coastline and estuaries you will see herons, oystercatchers, ducks, gulls, plovers, swans, kingfishers, terns, stilts, spoonbills, shags, and penguins - including one of the world's rarest penguin species, the Yellow-Eyed Penguin (hoiho in Maori). The sub-alpine parrot (or kea) is very well known for its cheeky antics and infamous behavior including the removal of rubber moldings from rental cars - consider yourselves warned!
Kea |
