This is a companion to my Bird of the Day blog, which focuses on birds I have seen in Victoria, Canada.

When my husband and I started planning a trip to New Zealand, I was delighted to read about the large number of unique birds that reside there. Having exhausted the supply of new birds at home, this was a welcome opportunity to continue my birding education. This blog will cover the various birding sites on the North and South Islands and (hopefully) the multitude of birds we encounter there.

Monday, February 27, 2012

Kaikoura

Having read that Kaikoura is the albatross capital of New Zealand, if not the world, we decided to take a boat trip with Albatross Encounter. We saw five different species of albatross: Southern Royal Albatross, two species of wandering albatross (Gibson's and Antipodean) and two types of mollymawk (Salvin's and New Zealand White-capped). 

Southern Royal Albatross
Gibson's Wandering Albatross
Antipodean Wandering Albatross

New Zealand White-chinned Mollymawk
Salvin's Mollymawk
Other seabirds were also plentiful in the area, including petrel.

Cape Petrel

White-chinned Petrel

Giant-Northern Petrel
As an extra bonus, we saw both Dusky and Hector's Dolphins while out on the water, as well as a Little Blue Penguin. All in all, it was a great trip and a definite must for anyone interested in seabirds. 

Little Blue Penguin
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