4 of New Zealand’s Most Exotic Animals

By
Ben S
-
Photo by Pablo Heimplatz on Unsplash

If you’re a nature lover and enjoy wildlife expeditions, New Zealand is a great place to visit. Home to a large variety of vibrant flora and fauna, you can spot many rare and exotic animals.

When you’re out in New Zealand searching for wildlife, here are 4 peculiar native creatures to look out for.

The Kakapo

Only around 100 left worldwide, the kakapo is a fluffy, flightless, and nocturnal parrot that can sometimes be found waddling around the forest floor.

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Don’t be fooled by the mobility of the Earth’s ONLY flightless parrot! With the Kakapo’s strong but short legs and large feet, it is still able to easily hike around the island and climb the branches of trees to safely roost and sleep during the day and become active at night. • • • #Repost @kakapo_recovery Kākāpō Alison who once suffered from a fractured leg stares disapprovingly at the rangers that have visited to perform a routine health check. You would never know she injured it because she sure can climb. Named after Alison Ballance; a zoologist, broadcaster, and writer who produced and presented Radio New Zealand’s weekly science and environment programme Our Changing World. Also author of Kākāpō: Rescued from the Brink of Extinction. Photo @tal_ttocs #kakapo #kakaporecovery #endangeredspecies #docgovtnz #parrots #birdsnewzealand #birds #nzbirds #birdsofaotearoa #conservation

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The Tuatara

The only remaining kind of reptile older than the dinosaurs, the tuatara is known as a “living fossil.” Of immense importance to science, it is hard to find tuataras in the wild so you will have to find them in captivity such as at Aukland Zoo.

The Kea

The kea is the world’s only parrot that lives in the snow. It is known for being intensely intelligent and can be found all over the country searching for food. Fittingly, a group of kea is known as a circus.

The Kiwi

The kiwi is a must-see on any New Zealand trip. Known as the country’s national animal, it is a sight to behold. Not only do they look really cute but see if you can spot one of their eggs—they’re about a quarter of the female’s body weight!

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Meet Sparky, a North Island Brown Kiwi that lives at the Whangarei Native bird recovery center on NZ North Island. I had the pleasure of meeting this beautiful ‘spokesbird’ while living in New Zealand. He travels from school to school and event to event teaching people the importance of wildlife conservation and appreciation. It’s a tiring job but I’m glad he’s up for it. Too many of these guys get attacked by cats and dogs or introduced pests or sadly hit by cars. Awareness can go along way with the general public some of which have no idea these guys exist or where. #kiwi #kiwibird #newzealand #newzealandbirds #nzbirds #birdsofaotearoa #aotearoa #whangarei #birdrescue #conservation #wildlifeconservation #birds #feather_perfection  #nuts_about_birds #planetbirds #bb_of_ig #bestbirdshots #featured_wildlife #ip_birds #birds_adored #earthcapture #bbcearth #animal_sultans #bird_brilliance #pocket_birds #birds_captures #birds_private #birds #your_best_birds #kings_birds #wildlife_perfection

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