Species |
Latin name |
Māori name |
Notes |
KIWIS |
|
|
|
Stewart Island Brown Kiwi
|
Apteryx australis lawryi
|
Tokoeka |
Fairly common & occasionally diurnal |
PENGUINS |
|
|
|
Fiordland Crested Penguin
|
Eudyptes pachyrhynchus
|
Tawaki |
Fairly common summer breeding migrant |
Snares Crested Penguin |
Eudyptes robustus |
|
Rare autumn visitor |
Yellow-eyed Penguin |
Megadyptes antipodes |
Hoiho |
Present all year |
King Penguin |
Aptenodytes patagonicus |
|
Very rare visitor from the south |
Blue Penguin |
Eudyptula minor |
Korora |
Present all year |
ALBATROSSES |
|
|
|
Wandering Albatross |
Diomedea exulans |
|
Not a common visitor |
Northern Royal Albatross |
Diomedea sanfordi |
|
Less common than the Southern Royal |
Southern Royal Albatross |
Diomedea epomophora |
Toroa |
Fairly common |
Black-browed Albatross |
Thalassarche melanophris |
|
More of a spring visitor |
Campbell Island Albatross |
Thalassarche impavida |
|
More of a spring visitor |
Buller's Albatross
(Southern & Pacific) |
Thalassarche bulleri |
|
Common / tricky to see during Dec/Jan |
Grey-headed Albatross |
Thalassarche chrysostama |
|
Very rare visitor from the south |
NZ White Capped Albatross |
Thassarche cauta steadi |
|
Very common |
Salvin's Albatross |
Thalassarche cauta salvini |
|
More common during summer months |
Chatham Island Albatross |
Thalassarche eremita |
|
Very rare visitor / seen early spring |
Light-mantled Albatross |
Phoebetria palpebrata |
Toroa pango |
Very rare visitor / winter more likely |
PETRELS, SHEARWATERS, FULMARS and PRIONS |
|
Northern Giant Petrel |
Macronectes halli |
Nelly |
Common |
Southern Giant Petrel |
Macronectes giganteus |
Nelly |
Not very common / winter more likely |
Southern Fulmar |
Fulmarus glacialoides |
|
Very rare visitor from the south |
Cape Petrel |
Daption capense |
|
Fairly common |
Mottled Petrel |
Pterodroma inexpectata |
Korure |
Summer breeder / can be tricky to see |
White-naped Petrel |
Pterodroma cervicalis |
|
Very very rare / one recorded on Stewart Island which was the most southern record ever... |
White-headed Petrel |
Pterodroma lessonii |
|
Not a common visitor /
spring & autumn more likely |
Grey-faced Petrel |
Pterodroma macroptera |
Oi |
Not common |
Soft-plumaged Petrel |
Pterodroma mollis |
|
Not a common visitor /
spring & autumn more likely |
Cook's Petrel |
Pterodroma cookii |
Tītī |
Fairly common |
Gould's Petrel |
Pterodroma leucoptera |
|
Very very rare /
one recorded on Stewart Island |
Broad-billed Prion |
Pachyptila vittata |
Parara |
Not common / Stewart Island is one of the best places to see this bird |
Fairy Prion |
Pachyptila turtur |
Tītī wainui |
Fairly common |
Antarctic Prion |
Pachyptila desolata |
|
Not very common |
Blue Petrel |
Halobaena caerulea |
|
Very very rare visitor from the south |
White-chinned Petrel |
Procellaria aequinoctialis |
Shoemaker |
Fairly common |
Westland Petrel |
Procellaria westlandica |
Taiko |
Not very common |
Great Shearwater |
Puffinus gravis |
|
Very very rare /
one recorded on Stewart Island |
Buller's Shearwater |
Puffinus bulleri |
|
Visitor from the north / not common |
Sooty Shearwater |
Puffinus griseus |
Tītī |
Very common breeder /
less likely to be seen during winter |
Short-tailed Shearwater |
Puffinus tenuirostris |
|
Common during spring /
seen amongst the Sooties |
Fluttering Shearwater |
Puffinus gavia |
|
Not very common |
Hutton's Shearwater |
Puffinus huttoni |
|
Becoming more common /
seen amongst the Sooties |
Subantarctic Little Shearwater |
Puffinus assimilis |
|
Very rare visitor from the south |
STORM PETRELS |
|
|
|
Wilson's Storm Petrel |
Oceanites oceanicus |
|
Not very common |
Grey-backed Storm-Petrel |
Garrodia nereis |
|
Probably the most common Stormie around Stewart Island |
White-faced Storm-Petrel |
Pelagodroma marina |
Takahikare-Moana |
Unusual visitor |
Black-bellied Storm-Petrel |
Fregetta tropica |
|
Not very common |
DIVING PETRELS |
|
|
|
Common Diving Petrel |
Pelecanoides urinatrix |
Kuaka |
Fairly common |
GANNETS |
|
|
|
Australasian Gannet
|
Morus serrator
|
Takapu |
Unusual visitor |
SHAGS or CORMORANTS |
|
|
|
Black Shag |
Phalacrocorax carbo |
Kawau |
Not very common |
Pied Shag |
Phalacrocorax varius |
Karuhiruhi |
Very common |
Little Black Shag |
Phalacrocorax sulcirostris |
|
Rare visitor this far south |
Little Pied Shag |
Phalacrocorax melanoleucos |
Kawaupaka |
Very common |
Spotted Shag |
Phalacrocorax punctatus |
Parekareka |
Very common |
Foveaux Shag |
Leucocarbo stewarti |
|
Formerly Stewart Island Shag, now split from mainland Otago Shag. Fairly common. |
HERONS, EGRETS and BITTERNS |
|
|
Great White Egret |
Egretta alba |
Kotuku |
Unusual visitor /
a few Stewart Island records each year |
White-faced Heron |
Egretta novaehollandiae |
|
Very common |
Pacific Reef Heron |
Egretta sacra |
Matuka Moana |
Not very common /
more likely during winter |
Cattle Egret |
Bubulcus ibis |
|
More common during winter particularly at Ringa Ringa golf course |
Australasian Bittern |
Botaurus poiciloptilus |
Matuku |
Breed on Stewart Island in the wetlands towards Mason Bay |
Glossy Ibis |
Plegadis facinellus |
|
A freshly dead bird found at Horseshoe Bay beach June 2017 / first record for Stewart Island |
Royal Spoonbill |
Platalea regia |
|
Becoming more common particularly in Paterson Inlet |
GEESE, SWANS and DUCKS |
|
|
Black Swan |
Cygnus atratus |
|
Common in Paterson Inlet |
Paradise Shelduck |
Tadorna variegata |
Putangitangi |
Very common |
Chestnut-breasted Shelduck |
Tadorna tadornoides |
|
Very rare Australian vagrant |
Mallard |
Anas platyrhynchos |
|
Very common |
Pacific Black Duck |
Anas supercilliosa |
Parera |
Not unusual /
check for Mallard hybridisation |
HARRIER |
|
|
|
Swamp Harrier
|
Circus approximans |
Kahu |
Common |
FALCONS |
|
|
|
New Zealand Falcon
|
Falco novaeseelandiae
|
Karearea |
Not very common /
more likely during winter |
RAILS and WEKA |
|
|
|
Stewart Island Weka |
Gallirallus australis |
|
More common on Ulva Island than Stewart Island |
Baillon's Crake / Marsh Crake |
Porzana pusilla affinis |
Kotoreke |
Breed on Stewart Island in the wetlands towards Mason Bay |
Australasian Coot |
Fulica atra |
|
Very rare visitor from the mainland /
one confirmed Stewart Island record |
Pukeko |
Porphyrio porphyrio |
|
Rare visitor from the mainland |
OYSTERCATCHERS |
|
|
|
South Island Pied Oystercatcher
|
Haematopus finschi
|
Torea |
Fairly common |
Variable Oystercatcher
|
Haematopus unicolor
|
Torea, Toreapango |
Very common |
STILTS |
|
|
|
Pied Stilt |
Himantopus himmantopus leucocephalus |
Poaka |
Very uncommon visitor |
PLOVERS and DOTTERELS |
|
|
Masked Lapwing |
Vanellus miles |
|
Common |
New Zealand Dotterel (Southern) |
Charadrius obscurus |
Tuturiwhatu |
One of New Zealand's rarest birds /
best place to see them is Mason Bay |
Double-Banded Plover |
Charadrius bicinctus |
Tuturiwhatu |
Fairly common |
GODWITS |
|
|
|
Bar-Tailed Godwit |
Limosa lapponica |
Kuaka |
Many spend summer on Stewart Island before heading back to Alaska to breed |
Far-Eastern Curlew |
Numenius madagascariensis |
|
Very rare visitor /
one confirmed Stewart Island record |
SANDPIPERS |
|
|
|
Ruddy Turnstone |
Arenaria interpres |
|
A few spend summer on Stewart Island |
Sanderling |
Calidris alba |
|
Very rare visitor |
Wrybill |
Anarhynchus frontalis |
Ngutu pare /
Ngutu parore |
Rare visitor from the mainland |
Common Sandpiper |
Tringa hypoleuco |
|
Mega rare vagrant |
SKUAS |
|
|
|
Arctic Skua
|
Stercorarius parasitcus |
|
Unusual visitor |
Pomarine Skua |
Stercorarius pomarines |
|
Very rare visitor |
Brown Skua |
Stercorarius antarcticus |
Hakoakoa |
Common breeding bird /
tricky to see during winter |
GULLS, TERNS and NODDIES |
|
|
Kelp Gull
|
Larus dominicanus
|
Karoro |
Very common |
Red-billed Gull
|
Larus scopulinus
|
Tarapunga |
Very common |
Black-billed Gull
|
Larus bulleri
|
|
Unusual visitor from the mainland |
Black-fronted Tern
|
Sterna albostriata
|
Tarapiroe |
Autumn is the best time to see this bird |
White-fronted Tern
|
Sterna striata
|
Tara |
Very common |
Common Tern |
Sterna hirundo longpennis |
|
Rare vagrant |
Antarctic Tern
|
Sterna vittata
|
|
Becoming increasingly difficult to see |
Arctic Tern |
Sterna paradisaea
|
|
Rare migrant from northern hemisphere / easily overlooked among WF Terns |
PIGEONS and DOVES |
|
|
|
Feral Pigeon |
Columba livia |
|
Very rare visitor from the mainland |
New Zealand Pigeon
|
Hemiphaga novaseelandiae
|
Kereru, Kukupa, Parea |
Very common endemic |
PARROTS and PARAKEETS |
|
|
South Island Kaka
|
Nestor meridionalis
|
|
Very common endemic |
Kakapo |
Strigops habroptila |
|
No longer on Stewart Island |
Red-crowned Parakeet
|
Cyanoramphus novaezelandiae
|
Kakariki |
Common on Stewart and Ulva Islands |
Yellow-crowned Parakeet
|
Cyanoramphus auriceps
|
Kakariki |
More common on Ulva Island than Stewart Island |
CUCKOOS |
|
|
|
Shining Bronze Cuckoo
|
Chrysococcyx lucidus
|
Pipiwharauroa |
Summer migrant with distinctive call |
Long-tailed Cuckoo
|
Eudynamys taitensis
|
Koekoea |
Summer migrant /
normally heard rather than seen |
OWLS |
|
|
|
Morepork
|
Ninox novaeseelandiae
|
Ruru |
Common breeder |
KINGFISHERS |
|
|
|
Sacred Kingfisher
|
Halcyon sanctus
|
Kotare |
Easy to see at Mill Creek where they breed / not very common elsewhere |
NEW ZEALAND WRENS |
|
|
|
South Island Rifleman
|
Acanthisitta chloris |
Tītipounamu |
Easiest seen on Ulva Island /
tricky to see on Stewart Island |
LARKS |
|
|
|
Eurasian Skylark
|
Alauda arvesis
|
|
European introduction / easy to see near Ringa Ringa golf course |
SWALLOWS |
|
|
|
Welcome Swallow
|
Hirundo neoxena |
|
Occasionally seen flying around township /
does not breed on Stewart Island |
White-throated Needletail /
Spine-tailed Swift |
Hirundapus caudacutus |
|
Rare vagrant /
at least three Stewart Island records |
Dusky Woodswallow |
Artamus cyanopterus |
|
Mega rare / New Zealand's only record at Traill Park on Stewart Island, 24th September 2014 |
PIPITS |
|
|
|
New Zealand Pipit
|
Anthus novaeseelandiae
|
Pihoihoi |
Breeds at Mason Bay /
common around township during winter |
FLYCATCHERS |
|
|
|
Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrike |
Coracina novaehollandiae |
|
Very rare overshot from Australia / only two confirmed Stewart Island records |
New Zealand Fantail |
Rhipidura fuliginosa
|
|
Very common endemic |
ACCENTORS |
|
|
|
Dunnock
|
Prunella modularis
|
|
Very common European introduction |
THRUSHES |
|
|
|
Eurasian Blackbird |
Turdus merula
|
|
Very common European introduction |
Song Thrush |
Turdus philomelos
|
|
Very common European introduction |
GRASSBIRDS and FERNBIRDS |
|
|
Stewart Island Fernbird |
Bowdleria punctata stewartiana
|
Matata |
Easily seen on walk to Mason Bay
|
ROBINS and CHATS |
|
|
|
South Island Tomtit
|
Petroica macrocephala
|
Ngiru-Ngiru |
Fairly common endemic |
Stewart Island Robin
|
Petroica australis
|
Toutouwai |
Easily seen on Ulva Island and on walk to Mason Bay |
NEW ZEALAND WARBLERS |
|
|
|
Yellowhead |
Mohoua ochrocephala
|
Mohoua |
Much sought after endemic only found on Ulva Island |
Brown Creeper / Pipipi
|
Mohua novaeseelandiae
|
Pipipi |
Fairly common endemic found on Ulva Island and Stewart Island |
GERYGONES |
|
|
|
Grey Warbler
|
Gerygone igata
|
Riroriro |
Very common |
SILVEREYES |
|
|
|
Silvereye |
Zosterops lateralis
|
Tauhou |
Very common |
NEW ZEALAND HONEYEATERS |
|
|
New Zealand Bellbird
|
Anthornis melanura
|
Korimako, Makomako |
Common endemic |
Tui
|
Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae
|
|
Common endemic |
NEW ZEALAND WATTLEBIRDS |
|
|
South Island Saddleback
|
Philesturnus carunculatus |
Tieke |
Rare endemic only found on Ulva Island |
FINCHES |
|
|
|
Chaffinch
|
Fringilla coelabs
|
|
Very common European introduction |
European Greenfinch
|
Carduelis chloris
|
|
Common European introduction |
Common Redpoll
|
Carduelis flammea
|
|
Fairly common European introduction |
European Goldfinch
|
Carduelis carduelis
|
|
Least common of European introduced finches, but the most attractive |
SPARROWS |
|
|
|
House Sparrow
|
Passer domesticus
|
|
Very common European introduction |
STARLINGS |
|
|
|
European Starling
|
Sturnus vulgaris
|
|
Very common European introduction |
BUTCHERBIRD |
|
|
|
Australasian Magpie
|
Gymnorhina tibicen
|
|
Uncommon visitor from the mainland |
BUNTINGS |
|
|
|
Yellowhammer |
Emberiza citrinella
|
|
Fairly common European introduced bunting (the poor man's Yellowhead!) |