>Hello! I am in the midst of planning an itinerary for a trip to New
>Zealand, 22 January - 6 February, 1995. I'm flying into Auckland and
..........

Hi Janet -- I have a few suggestions: Two particular highlights are the
Cape Kidnappers Gannet colony near Napier, and the Royal Albatross colony
near Dunedin. Both are outstanding; both are rather touristy, but well
worth it. To see the Gannets, one takes a tractor sort of thing
('hayride' mode) out to the colony. Quite a few other birds can be seen
en route, and it's great fun. The Albatross colony on the Otago
peninsula is walk-in deal, best if it's windy (it usually is) because
that's when the birds fly around. At dusk, one can go down to the
beaches in the area and see Yellow-eyed Penguins, a very local species,
come ashore.

If you've got any interest in pelagic birds, New Zealand has some of the
best pelagic birding in the world. The ferry between the North and South
Islands, and the one to Stewart Island are both super. Also it's easy to
get on inexpensive sightseeing boat trips out of Auckland to the various
islands in the Gulf, where in addition to Shearwaters and Blue Penguins
over the water, one can also see super-rare endemics such as Saddleback,
Brown Teal, etc. on the islands). Or you can get on fishing boats out
into the ocean from any of the larger coastal cities, or the town of
Half Moon Bay on Stewart Island. Stewart Island is best overall, in my
opinion, because Mollymawks (Albatrosses), Petrels, Skuas, etc. come very
close to shore. In fact Stewart Island is probably my favorite place in
all of New Zealand. There's a mainland Sooty Shearwater/Blue Penguin
colony there which is active at dusk. Endemic passerines are easy to
find around the town, and on the nearby islets. Also it's fairly easy to
see Kiwi's there (on the islets) at night. You'll probably want to leave
your car at Invercargill, take the ferry, and explore on foot. There's
a little travel office in the center of town that can help you arrange
boat trips, guided tours, etc.

If you're interested in shorebirds, the Firth of Thames is the place to
go. It's not far from Auckland. It has neat endemics such as New
Zealand Dotterels, Shore-Plovers, Wrybills, in addition to huge
flocks of migrants from the north. I have spent many hours there and
always had to leave before I was ready.

That should be good for starters. Let me know if you have any specific
target birds and I might be able to point you in the right direction.

Skip
--
Skip_Russell at intersolv.com
Aloha, Oregon