New Zealand; Day 12 - Stewart Island & Ulva Island

  Today would be our only full day on Stewart Island, or more accurately in the Raikoura National Park, since for the morning we had arranged a charter to the nearby predator-free Ulva island, which is home to a number of target birds. This plan saw us through until early afternoon, and meant we got to walk through an area of pristine coastal forest surrounded by beautiful beaches and other stunning islands.

  We made our way across from Golden Bay Wharf and arrived on Ulva Island itself at around 09:00.  This early in the morning we found the trails lively with birds, and we quickly started to see common species I had become familiar with over the last few days. Red-crowned Parakeet was nice to see well after yesterdays flyovers, and at the end of the afternoon I had a nice Yellow-crowned Parakeet as well. Kaka flew over multiple times during the morning, and at one point there was one playfully feeding low in the canopy allowing excellent views. The usual assortment of Tomtit, South Island Robin and New Zealand Fantail also entertained us during the day.

  There were two key targets for me on the island; the South Island Saddleback and the Yellowhead. Thanks to some information I was given by Dan Pointon I knew he had seen Saddleback on the edge of Sydney Beach, so that was where we went. No sooner had we arrived than I spotted a Saddleback feeding on fruits in a small tree. A huge relief as it was a bird I feared I would miss. The bird quickly moved, as did we when a large bull New Zealand Sea-Lion started chasing us, but throughout the morning we saw a minimum total of six Saddleback, involving probably two family groups. Yellowhead took a little longer but eventually turned out to be very common and we were treated to some excellent views throughout the morning.

  Once back on Stewart Island, I decided to explore the coast to the north of Oban, in the vague hope of finding Fiordland Penguin. Again, Dan Pointon had explained how to see a group of moulting birds on a small island in one of the small coves, but despite how hard I tried I could not see into the cave they were residing in, at least not enough to see if there were Penguins in it. Despite this, I decided to carry on round to Horseshoe Point to see if there were any other birds around, and after waiting half an hour there I was thrilled when a Fiordland Penguin swam past, surfacing a total of three times before I lost it. An absolutely brilliant bonus bird for my time here on Stewart Island. And as I walked back, early evening, I had my first Bullers Albatross in the harbour, although very distant from where I was viewing.

  In the evening we tried to see the Little Penguins coming in to roost off the jetty in Oban itself but sadly nothing happened by dark. Still, a flock of 120 Bar-tailed Godwit flew over us heading into the island, and a Morepork was singing near the jetty. It was a very pleasant evening. 

Species List:
Stewart Island: Mallard, New Zealand Pigeon, Variable Oystercatcher, Bar-tailed Godwit, Silver Gull, Kelp Gull, White-fronted Tern, Little Penguin, Fiordland Penguin, Buller's Albatross, Shy Albatross, Little Pied Cormorant, Spotted Shag, Australian Pied Cormorant, Foveaux Shag, White-faced Heron, New Zealand Kaka, Red-crowned Parakeet, Tui, New Zealand Bellbird, Grey Gerygone, New Zealand Fantail, Tomtit, Welcome Swallow, Silvereye, Common Starling, Song Thrush, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Eurasian Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, Lesser Redpoll,
Ulva Island: New Zealand Pigeon, Variable Oystercatcher, Silver Gull, Kelp Gull, Little Penguin, Little Pied Cormorant, Spotted Shag, Australian Pied Cormorant, Foveaux Shag, New Zealand Kaka, Red-crowned Parakeet, Yellow-crowned Parakeet, Tui, New Zealand Bellbird, Grey Gerygone, Yellowhead, Pipipi, New Zealand Fantail, South Island Saddleback, Tomtit, South Island Robin,