NZ Wildlife
 

Hi everyone!

Well my move is imminent and there are all sorts of questions going through my head. The latest one is:

I'm a nature lover - I've read that there aren't many mammals in New Zealand. What can I expect to see? Rabbits? Possums? Deer?

If not, there's always the marine life to enthuse about!

And another nature related question: Do the crickets chirp at night? (I LOVE that sound).

HeatherGirl

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

I was surprised to see the hedgehog in a list of mammals in New Zealand.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

weasals, rats, mice, deer, wild turkey's, we have hedgehogs and a possum living in our garden. The sealife is better, dolphins and whales in Auckland harbour, seals and blue penguins when kayaking, octopus, rays and countless fish when snorkelling.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

Depends a bit on where you live. When I was in the country we had possums, rabbits and feral cats (abandoned). Now I'm in town I've seen a hedgehog, but not much else. Saw a couple of chaffinches the other day which was a bit of surprise. My favourite NZ bird is the pukeko.

Cicadas chirrup day and night when the weather warms up.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

We have had an hedgehog in our garden, we called him Spiny Norman! Haven't seen any possums in our immediate area but have seen a few 'sleeping' :thumbsup: ones by the side of the road. There are some rabbits on the golf course across the way.

Mostly we see Pukekos, Indian mynah birds :thumbdown:, sparrows, silver eyes, rosellas, NZ kingfisher, blackbirds, chaffinches, thrush. I can hear a couple of Morepork but I can never see them :(.

Seen a few geckos, lots of preying mantis, black crickets (yuck), cicadas, plus the usual creepy crawlies as well as bush cockroaches.

Around here I've seen sting rays, dolphins, little blue penguins, orca.

We aren't too far from Tiritiri Matangi Island & love heading over there to see all the different bird life. Takahe, stitch birds, saddlebacks etc. It's well worth a visit.

Forgot to mention Tuis. There are peacocks at Shakespear Regional Park

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

I've not been there - can you really see Takahe? - must make a visit.

I forgot about the geckos - yes I've seen a few of those. With the insects I just shut my eyes and pretend they are not there.:D

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

Yes you can really see Takahe. Taking a guided tour is a good idea the first time you go. Take a look at www.360discovery.co.nz.

They leave from the waterfront in Auckland (not the ferry building), head to Gulf Harbour & then over to Tiri. Take a packed lunch with you in a sealed container. Backpacks, picnic bags etc. can be put on the trailer when you come into the harbour & are taken upto the lighthouse ready for lunchtime. I usually have a wallet holder to keep my valuables in plus tissues, wet wipes etc. Then just have a water bottle & camera to carry around. It's a great day out especially on a sunny day.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

Giant Wetas, Fantails and the giant wood Pidgeon(kereru/kuku/kukupa). Seen a morepork in a tree outside our sitting room.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

You're just showing off :p:rofl: I love the fantails. Had the occasional one in our garden

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

yes crickets chirp at night, i am in the uk at the moment not a sound here in the summer evenings! its crap cant wait to come back

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

Wow! Thanks guys - I'm well excited now!

The sound of the crickets chirping in the evenings remind me of sunshine holidays... wonder if that novelty will ever wear off. Hope not!

Can you see penguins in the North Island or only on the South? Where's is good for spotting dolphins and Orca - do you think I'll see anything off the Taranaki coast?

HeatherGirl

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

Think you can see Penguins on both islands but they're more frequent in the South Island. Certainly down the east coast from Banks Pennisula southwards. We came across a number of the little penguins when we did an evening walk along the Banks Pennisula. Cute but noisy little things

Dolphins again I think are all over. You can even see Whales as well in New Zealand. I think the best place for those large Sperm Whales is Kaikoura. You can even pose next to a Seal there

Only advice if you are wandering close round beaches is to watch out for those Katipo Spiders. Funny looking things that are more likely to pooh themselves sprinting away when you see them. Sometimes though they may turn around and arm themselves for a bite.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

We even get to see wildlife in Auckland - recently a blue penguin came ashore at Mission Bay, have also seen Orcas swimming past Mission Bay one evening and stingrays at the Viaduct. You can also take boats out to see the dolphins in the Hauraki Gulf, but you will see lots more of these types of mammals in more remote places and also in the South Island.

As for birdlife here in the city we have kingfishers, herons, pukekoes, fantails, tuis, silver eyes, lorikeets, swallows and of course your usual sparrows, blackbirds, thrushes and minor birds. We have a hedgehog in our garden as well as heaps of cicadas, wetas and common geckos. We also hear but do not see the Morepork and Keru (wood pidgeon). So even in the city you can get lots of wildlife.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

I was down in south Brighton, Dunedin earlier and there was a young seal cub laid on the beach, they're normally on the beaches up on the penisular so I was surprised. It's a good job I saw it before my dog Ringo did, I had time to grab him before he legged it over to check it out. On one of the penisular beaches a while back we saw 22 seals on one beach, we've also seen quite a few penguins but they're much harder to find hid away behind rocks and in caves. I never really saw any wildlife whilst up on the remote beaches near Auckland but it's a different story down here.

My new favourite hobby is Paua shell finding, I've found 3 today but finding one washed up in perfect condition is pretty tough.

Re: NZ Wildlife
 

Yesterday "Spiny Norman" returned to our garden :thumbup: