The Tui is one of many beautiful New Zealand endemics we can see on this tour. Photo: Gavin Bieber
Bordered by the Tasman Sea on the west and the South Pacific on the east, New Zealand stretches almost 1,000 miles north to south. Eons of isolation have given the three main islands and a multitude of smaller islands a unique avifauna, with four endemic families, and an array of endemic species. Thanks to cold and biologically rich waters, the archipelago also supports one of the world’s most diverse collection of breeding and foraging seabirds.
Our 2022 cruise starts and ends in Brisbane, allowing us to cross the Tasman Sea twice at quite different latitudes, as well as covering the entire east coast of New Zealand. We should see over 35 species of tubenose including eight species (and many additional subspecies) of albatross. We’ll traverse these waters aboard a Princess cruise ship, which is of course both comfortable and well-appointed but also stable enough to permit telescope use even in rough waters. We feel this cruise offers arguably the best accessible seabirding experience in the South Pacific and probably one of the best in the world.
We should say that, in addition to spending five full days at sea and a day cruising in the world-renowned Fiordland National Park, we’ll arrange land-based expeditions for our six shore days around the North and South Islands of New Zealand. During the course of these excursions, we’ll sample a broad cross section of the birds and habitats available in coastal New Zealand.
We’ll also offer a pre-cruise extension at the departure point for our cruise. The 2024 extension, which starts and ends in Brisbane, will involve a week exploring a corner of Southeasstern Queensland. We’ll start off around the city of Brisbane where mangroves will hold an array of wintering waders, the local Mangrove Honeyeater and Mangrove Gerygone and impressive Torresian Kingfisher. We’ll then move inland, visiting an array of arid forest lands and small lakes that lie to the west of the coastal mountains. Large flocks of cockatoos feed along the highways and multicolored fairy-wren, thornbills and honeyeaters fill the woods while kangaroos and emus graze in the paddocks and buzzing flocks of lorikeets visit the treetops. We’ll cap the week off with a few days around the temperate rainforest in the mountains abutting the Victoria border. We’ll stay at the excellent O’Reilly’s lodge, where wild but very approachable birds such as Australian King Parrot, and Regent and Satin Bowerbirds act as a welcoming committee. It will be a bird-filled week, sampling a wide array of habitat types all in a relatively small corner of the country!
Pre-tour Brisbane Extension:
Day 1 (Feb 4): Our tour will commence with a 6pm meeting and dinner at our hotel in Brisbane. Night in Brisbane.
Day 2: We’ll start the day by exploring some excellent birding spots along the coast a little south of the Brisbane airport. At an area with a tall fringing row of mangroves near Lytton Point we should find Mangrove Honeyeater and Mangrove Gerygone lurking in the canopy. The open fields around the point also support healthy populations of birds like Australasian Figbird, Magpie-lark, Willie Wagtail, Welcome Swallow and the handsome, if common, Crested Pigeon. Once we have soaked in some of these more widespread birds, we’ll move over to the nearby Mangrove Boardwalk and high tide roost near Wynnum. Here we should encounter our first dazzling Fairywrens, with Superb and Red-backed both likely, and Variegated possible as well. Tawny Grassbirds and Golden-headed Cisticolas are often around the brushier sections near the car park, and if the trees are in blossom, we might find an array of honeyeaters including the impressive Blue-faced foraging around the area as well. We’ll try to time our visit for a high tide, when good numbers of waders often loaf around the small bird hide here. Species should include the hulking Far Eastern Curlew, both Bar-tailed and Black-tailed Godwits, Great Knot, Marsh Sandpiper and Red-necked Stint, just to name a few. Out on the boardwalk, which winds around an extensive stand of mangroves that line the shore of Moreton Bay we should encounter Torresian (and Sacred) Kingfishers, Rufous Whistler, little flocks of Silvereye and a nice mix of herons and egrets. After lunch we’ll move a tiny bit inland with a visit to some freshwater marshes with extensive stands of paperbark trees. Here we should find an array of waterfowl, hopefully including Plumed and Wandering Whistling-Ducks, calling Australian Reed Warblers and perhaps even a secretive Spotless Crake or Buff-banded Rail. The adjacent trees should hold our first Rainbow Bee-eaters, and an array of honeyeaters including Noisy Friarbird, Brown Honeyeater and attractive groups of Double-barred Finches. Night in Brisbane.
Day 3: We’ll start the day early to beat the worst of the Brisbane traffic as we head a bit to the north to the Tinchi Tamba Wetlands. This nearly 400-hectare city park lies adjacent to the Pine River and protects an area of tidal flats, coastal mangroves and salt-marshes, paperbark wetlands, open grasslands and patches of thicker forest. Widely regarded as the premier birding destination within Brisbane city limits this park boasts an impressive birdlist (over 240 species as of 2020). We’ll spend a relaxed morning here, soaking up the wealth of birdlife from Australian Brushturkeys strutting around in the understory to Brahminy and Whistling Kites circling overhead, Chestnut and Grey Teal paddling around along the riverbank and Laughing Kookaburras sounding off from the trees. The area supports a nice variety of parrots as well, and we should encounter noisy groups of Galah, Little Corella and Sulphur-crested Cockatoos out on the open fields, Pale-headed Rosellas, and Rainbow and Scaly-breasted Lorikeets over the course of the morning. After a slightly early lunch we’ll start heading inland, skirting the western edge of the city before striking out towards our eventual destination; the city of Toowoomba. Toowoomba is the second largest inland city in the country, with about 160,000 inhabitants. It serves as the hub to the rich farming and ranching area known as the Darling Downs, which sit on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range. Before reaching our destination, we’ll stop in to a few spots in the Lockyer Valley, one of the most fertile agricultural regions on the planet, and the source of a major proportion of the countries farmed vegetables and grains. Around the large Atkinsons Dam, part of the Lower Lockyer irrigation scheme we’ll look for Yellow-rumped Thornbills, Black-faced Cuckooshrike, Little Friarbirds, and Noisy Miners around the picnic area. The taller grasses around the pond sometimes support numbers of finches, including the local Plum-headed Finch, Double-barred Finch, and Chestnut-breasted Mannikin, as well as a healthy population of Brown Quail and skulky Little and Tawny Grassbirds. Out on the water we should see Australasian and Great Crested Grebes, Black Swan, Magpie Goose and our first Pink-eared Ducks. A stop in at the nearby Seven Mile lagoon should reveal Australian Pelicans, Glossy, Straw-necked and Australian Ibis and possibly both Royal and Yellow-billed Spoonbills as well as good chances for White-bellied Sea-Eagle, Swamp Harrier and Brown Songlark. Eventually we’ll reach Toowoomba, where we will spend the night.
Day 4: Redwood Park, to Coolmunda/Inglewoo This morning will find us a bit north of Toowoomba, where we will spend some time exploring the trails around Highfields Falls. The small but scenic waterfall serves as the main focus for the park, but the many well laid out trails that wind around the falls area provide easy access to a very nice mix of birds. Depending on the fruiting and flowering conditions in the area we might find Brown Cuckoo-Doves, Common Bronzewing and Peaceful and Bar-shouldered Doves gobbling small fruits. The area is particularly good for cuckoo and honeyeater diversity, including such birds as Pacific Koel, the impressive Channel-billed Cuckoo, Pheasant Coucal and Lewin’s, Yellow-faced, Brown, White-naped Honeyearters and the colourful Scarlet Myzomela. Small bush birds should be evident as well, with White-browed and Large-billed Scrubwren joining Brown and Striated Thornbills, and White-throated and Brown Gerygones in little mixed flocks. With luck we’ll also pick out a trio of flashy flycatchers, including Black-faced and Spectacled Monarchs and Leaden Flycatcher. Leaving the Toowoomba area behind we’ll head southwest, bound for the small but usually very birdy Irongate Natural Conservation Reserve, a site owned and managed by the Queensland Government to protect several species of endangered trees. Here we’ll look for bird such as Cockatiel, Greater Bluebonnet, Red-rumped Parrot, Purple-backed Fairywren, Spiny-cheeked and Striped Honeyeaters, Speckled Warbler, Yellow Thornbill, Weebill, White-winged and Varied Trillers, Eastern Yellow Robin, and Mistletoebird. In the mid-afternoon we’ll head down to our base for the night in Inglewood, a small country town with the charming slogan of “catch the country spirit”. We should arrive with some time to spare, allowing for a bit of a rest before we head out for a late afternoon trip a bit south of Lake Coolmunda. Here in a more open arid landscape, we might find a wandering group of Emu, family group of Gray-crowned Babbler, or roving flock of Woodswallow (White-breasted, Masked and Dusky are all possible here). Night in Inglewood.
Day 5: Our main birding destination for the day will be a quiet backcountry road a bit to the north of Coolmunda Dam. Although the road looks rather unremarkable, as it winds north through a series of open fields and hedgerows, with small rows of trees and shrubs along the verge the area supports a wealth of birdlife, with a species list of over 200! Among the more common species in the area, we’ll look for things like Squatter Pigeon, Rainbow Bee-eater, Dollarbird, Red-winged Parrot, White-winged Fairywren, Fuscous, White-eared and Brown-headed Honeyeaters, Buff-rumped Thornbill, Varied Sittella, and if we are quite lucky perhaps even Ground Cuckooshrike, Diamond Firetail or Spotted Bowerbird. The road eventually enters the Devine State Forest, where we might find Red-capped and Hooded Robin, Jacky-Winter, Restless Flycatcher, White-winged Chough and the curious Apostlebird. A small water hole here can often be productive in the summer heat, with an array of birds coming in to drink or bathe in the heat of the day. In the afternoon we’ll likely visit the nearby Coolmunda Dam area for some general birding, or other sites nearby depending on our remaining needs. Night in Inglewood.
Day 6: Today will largely be a travel day, as we make our way back eastwards and then up into the Border Range Mountains that lie along the New South Wales-Queensland border. In the morning we’ll spend a bit of time exploring some of the open forest and waterholes in the sprawling Durikai State Forest. This more open eucalypt forest supports a few special species that we likely will not have encountered by this point in the tour. We’ll seek out the always difficult to locate Painted Buttonquail, parrots such as the dazzling Turquoise Parrot and Little Lorikeet, White-browed Babbler, Yellow-tufted and perhaps Black-chinned Honeyeaters. Heading further east we’ll pass through open farmland and eucalyptus woods broken occasionally by marshes and streams, and we should see Gray Butcherbird, Little Friarbird, and perhaps Glossy Black Cockatoo or Pretty-faced (Whiptail) Wallaby. By late afternoon we’ll enter the subtropical rainforest of the Lamington Plateau, a change of environment marked by flocks of Crimson Rosellas. We’ll arrive at O’Reilly’s Guesthouse in time for some late afternoon birding. If we’re lucky we may be able to watch a Satin Bowerbird decorating its bower or hand-feed the many semi-tame Regent Bowerbirds, Australian King Parrots, or Red-browed Finches that decorate the lodge grounds. In the evening Red-necked Pademelons graze on the lawns, and during dinner Short-eared Brushtail Possums often come to the dining room feeders. Night at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Guesthouse.
Days 7-8: O’Reilly’s Guesthouse is celebrated by birdwatchers worldwide for its amazing shows of multicolored tropical species, many of which are hand-tame and present fantastic photographic opportunities. Species that frequent the guesthouse feeders include bizarre Australian Brush-Turkeys, stunning Regent Bowerbirds (the guesthouse emblem)—the male being arguably the most beautiful Australian bird—more subtle but equally attractive Satin Bowerbirds, chunky Wonga Pigeons, cheeky Lewin’s Honeyeaters, and ragged flocks of Crimson Rosellas and Australian King Parrots. But the feeding frenzies around the guesthouse are by no means the only ornithological attractions at O’Reilly’s. Set in the heart of Lamington National Park, the guesthouse has lengthy trails that take off in various directions through superb montane rainforest containing a wealth of specialties that will be new for us. These include Paradise Riflebird, curious Green Catbirds, entertaining Australian Logrunners, both Bassian and Russet-tailed Thrushes, remarkably confiding Eastern Whipbirds, and three species of scrub-wren all so tame they will feed within feet of us, and many, many more. Perhaps the ultimate prize is Albert’s Lyrebird, a species with a tiny world range but also a very shy bird, usually heard singing but not always seen—and even then, often just a large dark shape bounding away through the undergrowth. And after dinner one night we’ll make a serious attempt to find Marbled Frogmouth, a seldom-seen denizen of the high rainforest canopy. The lower slopes of the mountains are drier, and support a different suite of birds. On at least one of the days we’ll drop down in elevation to look for birds such as Red-browed Treecreeper, White-naped Honeyeater, Variegated Fairy-Wren, and Spotted Pardalote, and we’ll also visit a Bell Miner colony site, a treat for the aural senses, though the birds can be frustratingly difficult to locate because they remain largely motionless in the canopy. Nights at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Guesthouse.
Day 9 (Feb 12): After an early morning at O’Reilly’s searching for any species still missing and enjoying the superb ambience of the location and its many very approachable birds, we’ll drive back down to the coast and then east back towards the Brisbane harbour where we will board with our cruise ship in the early afternoon in preparation for an early evening departure.
Main Cruise:
Day 1 (Feb 12): The main tour begins at five o’clock in the evening with an onboard meeting and dinner shortly before the ship leaves the Brisbane Harbor.
Day 2-4: We’ll wake the next morning well east of Australia, as we traverse the Tasman Sea over the course of three days.This small sea, roughly 1,250 miles across, stretches between Australia and New Zealand and reaches depths of over 17,000 feet. If you are used to small-boat-based pelagic adventures, where the horizon is constantly dipping in and out of view and it’s hard to hold on to the railings while operating binoculars, the experience of birding and of telescope use from the comforts of Deck 8 on a large and stable cruise ship with ample space is a dream. Generally, we can find a protected area near the bow during all but the roughest sea conditions, and there are always endless opportunities for non-birding entertainment and food (or simply a comfortable bed) just meters away from our birding platform. Two days of seabirding will familiarize us with many of the different kinds of seabirds found in this region, as we transit from southern Australia to southwestern New Zealand coast. Six or more species of albatross are possible, including Gibson’s and Snowy Wandering, Northern Royal, Buller’s, Tasmanian Shy, and Salvin’s. Among the Pterodroma petrels, we should see mostly Cook’s and Gray-faced Petrels, and we hope to spot some rarer ones like the beautiful Mottled or the scarce White-headed. With the larger Procellaria petrels, we’ll learn how to spot Parkinson’s among the common White-chinned Petrels. We should also see a variety of shearwaters, including Flesh-footed, Buller’s, and Sooty, plus the fancy White-faced and possibly Black-bellied or Gray-backed Storm-Petrels. Other possibilities on this little-known route include Little Shearwater and Gould’s Petrels. Cetaceans can be plentiful in these waters as well, with about 35 species recorded. We’ll certainly keep an eye out for surfacing whales, and—with a bit of luck and some quick photography—may even be able to record a few rare Beaked Whales among the more common species. Nights aboard the ship.
Day 5: Today we’ll be cruising in the amazingly beautiful Fiordland National Park. New Zealand’s largest national park was formed millennia ago by massive glacial flows that carved deep fiords into the coast of South Island. At the heart of the park lies the deep-water Milford Sound. The sound cuts through the Southern Alps, and the shores are lined by towering cliffs that soar nearly a mile above the surface. Rainforest clings to the cliffs, and dozens of graceful waterfalls cascade into the ocean. The day will be filled with incredible scenery, but we will (of course) keep a watchful eye on the waters for seabirds as well. The endangered Fiordland Penguin is a distinct possibility here, though it will take sharp eyes to pick them out in the water, and with some luck we might spot a Southern Giant Petrel or dapper Cape (aka Pintado) Petrel. Bottlenose Dolphin and loafing New Zealand Fur Seals should be regular sights throughout the day, all set against one of the most scenic backdrops imaginable. Night aboard the ship.
Day 5: We’ll depart the harbor at Port Chalmers (just outside of Dunedin) and venture out to the Otago Peninsula. We’ll start the day at the Orokonui Sanctuary, a wonderful fenced reserve just a few kilometers out of the port. Here we will have our first chance to immerse ourselves in native forest, with a heavy presence of native birdlife. Tui and New Zealand Bellbird are common here, and we have excellent chances at also encountering Pipipi (New Zealand Creeper), South Island Robin, Rifleman and Tomtit. There is also a small population of the often very skulking New Zealand Fernbird here, which we were lucky to see on the 2020 cruise. After Orokonui we’ll enjoy a picnic lunch near the idyllic Hawkesbury Lagoon, which supports large populations of Paradise Shelduck, Black Swan, wading birds and other waterfowl. Our final birding stop for the day will be at Katiki Point, a small promontory that supports a population of endangered Yellow-eyed Penguins, as well as a large breeding colony of Red-billed Gulls and often loafing New Zealand Fur Seals. The peninsula in general is regarded as one of the top wildlife-viewing destinations in the country, and doubtless we’ll return to the ship in the afternoon with our cameras full of fabulous photos. Night aboard the ship.
Day 6: We’ll wake at Lyttelton, just south of the larger city of Christchurch. We’ll disembark shortly after docking and set out to explore the adjacent rugged coastline and the shores of the vast Lake Ellesmere. Our chief goal here is the bizarre Wrybill. These small plovers possess one of the oddest bills of any bird, bent sideways to the right at a shockingly abrupt angle. They use this unique bill to probe underneath large, rounded stones in braided rivers and rocky shorelines. It’s a scarce bird with an estimated population of only a few thousand. Here, too, we should see a selection of wintering northern hemisphere waders such as Bar-tailed Godwit, Sharp-tailed and Curlew Sandpipers, Red-necked Stint, and large numbers of Pied Stilts and Double-banded Plovers. We’ll look as well for the delicate Black-billed Gull among the throngs of Silver (Red-billed) and Kelp Gulls. After our stops for waterbirds we will head inland to the mountains visible on the horizon; it is admittedly a bit of a drive, but our chief target here, the garrulous and charismatic Kea, is well worth the effort. After exploring a bit of the beautiful foothills we’ll return to the town of Lyttelton and then back to the ship in the late afternoon. Night aboard the ship.
Day 7: We’ll berth in Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, which sits near Cook Strait, nestled in a dramatic landscape of forested peninsulas, seaside cliffs, and the sandy beaches of the Kapiti Coast. We’ll disembark and meet our driver, who will take us to the nearby Zealandia Ecosanctuary. This 225-hectare, fully fenced preserve serves as a testament to the perseverance of the country’s conservation community. New Zealand stands apart from the rest of the world in its proactive and intense efforts to save its remaining endemic species, remove introduced predators and plants, and restore as many of the historic ecosystems as possible. This park is the world’s first fully fenced urban sanctuary, with many endangered species being reintroduced or protected inside the predator-proof fencing. The managers of the park claim to have a 500-year plan to restore the region to as close to its pre-human state as possible. Admittedly this makes the area feel a bit like a giant zoo exhibit, but the wildlife contained within are safe from the ravages of cats and possums. The populations of several bird species here have increased dramatically, leading to a corresponding increase in sightings around greater Wellington. We should locate Brown Teal, North Island Saddleback, Stitchbird, Kaka, Red-crowned Parakeet and perhaps even Takahe. We might even spot a Tuatara (a very ancient lizard relative that is endemic to New Zealand) or huge cricket-like Weta, as we walk on the park’s trails. We’ll likely spend the entire morning here, stopping for lunch in Wellington. For those who wish it, some free time will be available in the afternoon to explore the city. Night aboard the ship.
Day 8: Today will be spent near the town of Napier, on the east coast of the North Island. In Napier we will spend the day exploring several wetland areas looking for waterfowl species we have missed so far, with our first good chance for New Zealand Grebe. We will have time at a local estuary to see specialties like New Zealand, Banded, and Black-fronted Dotterels, and should also be able to head into a forested area to look for North Island forest bird species such as Whitehead, North Island Robin, and North Island Tomtit. The difficult New Zealand Falcon is also a possible target. As we head out in the afternoon, we might have some time to look for seabirds which could include Australasian Gannet, Salvin’s, Buller’s, Northern Royal and Campbell Albatrosses, Northern Giant Petrel, Fluttering and Sooty Shearwaters, Fairy Prion, White-faced Storm-Petrel (a different cryptic species from the Australian birds), Parkinson’s Petrel, and perhaps Cook’s Petrels. Night aboard the ship.
Day 9: We’ll dock at the harbor near Tauranga in the early morning and will soon be away on our minibus bound for the Whirinaki Te Pua-a-Tane Conservation Park. Although the drive is long, it’s scenic, and the birding rewards once we’ve reached the forest make the trip well worth it. This protected area encompasses tracts of ancient Podocarpus totara trees and is widely considered one of the largest and most ecologically important forest reserves in the country. We’ll spend much of the day exploring some of the many trails through the reserve on the lookout for the scarce Yellow-crowned Parakeet, garrulous Kaka, North Island Robin, Tomtit, Tui, Shining Bronze and Long-tailed Cuckoos, and the diminutive Rifleman. Some of the birds that have been reintroduced to Tiritiri Matangi Island are still extant in the preserve as well, and we also may encounter New Zealand Bellbirds, Whitehead, and Grey Gerygone. The drive to and from the forest will certainly have birding possibilities, including wetlands harboring the local New Zealand Grebe and handsome New Zealand Scaup and we’ll keep a sharp eye out for New Zealand Falcon—always a tough bird to encounter throughout the country—as we drive back in the late afternoon to Tauranga to board the ship. Night aboard the ship.
Day 10: We’re scheduled to dock early in the morning, allowing us to disembark for a full day of birding near Auckland. We plan a short drive north to the coast near Muriwai, where an impressive colony of Australasian Gannets will be on display against a scenic backdrop of seaside bluffs, sand beaches, and coastal heath. A short boardwalk to a viewing platform allows visitors excellent views of these smart-looking birds, and—given the timing of our visit—there should be a lot of chicks on display as well. The coast here should support a few other species of interest such as Variable Oystercatcher, White-fronted Tern, and perhaps the large and colorful Tui—one of two species of Honeyeater native to New Zealand. Along the roadsides we’ll also experience a wealth of non-native species that now dominate much of the open landscapes of the country. We should see Eurasian Skylark, Song Thrush, Eurasian Blackbird, Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, European Goldfinch, and Yellowhammer in the hedgerows. We might also see wide-ranging Australasian birds such as Swamp Harrier, Masked Lapwing, Welcome Swallow, Australian Magpie, Sacred Kingfisher, and Purple Swamphen. Some native songbirds are possible, too, and we’ll keep an eye out for Grey Gerygones and New Zealand Fantails. On the way back to Auckland, we’ll stop at a few wader spots in search of the scarce New Zealand Dotterel, Double-banded Plover, and perhaps even the iconic Wrybill. As the day draws to a close, we’ll board our ship in time for dinner. Night aboard the ship.
Day 11-13: We’ll have three full days at sea, as we sail back across the Tasman Sea between the North Island of New Zealand and Melbourne. We will transition from the warmer subtropical waters off the northern New Zealand coast to the cooler waters off southern Australia, with an impressive variety of seabirds to keep us occupied. Some will be familiar to us from our first crossing of the Tasman Sea, but our higher latitude should make for a slightly different mix of species. We expect regular sightings of at least five species of albatross, shearwaters like Buller’s, Flesh-footed, Fluttering, and Sooty, and petrels like Cook’s and Gray-faced. We will keep our eyes open for rarer species along this route, potentially including the rare New Zealand Storm-Petrel and several Pterodroma petrels like Gould’s or Black-winged. Nights aboard the ship.
Day 14: We’ll arrive back in the port of Brisbane during the night and will disembark the ship early in the morning with participants shuttled to the airport or into town as they prefer.
Updated: 15 December 2022
Prices
- 2024 Tour Price Not Yet Known
- (Dec 2022 Cruise (with Landings) $3,700)
Notes
Questions? Tour Manager: Matt Brooks. Call 1-866-547-9868 (US or Canada) or (01) 520-320-9868 or click here to email.
* Tour invoices paid by check carry a 4% discount. Details here.
** The cruise price noted above covers only the land excursions during the cruise plus the leaders’ time on-board ship. It does not include your berth on the cruise ship, which must be booked directly with Princess Cruises. Details on booking space with both WINGS and Princess Cruises can be found here.
Maximum group size 14 plus leaders (second leader joins after 10 pax).