Okarito
You’ve probably never heard of this tiny village on New Zealand’s South Island, but you will know about its most famous residents
The email I receive from Ian Cooper to confirm my place on an Okarito Kiwi Tour mentions the word patience five times. Please bring: Patience, insect repellent, patience, warm clothes, patience, sturdy walking shoes, patience and some more patience …
So I’m not surprised to see a framed quote hanging on the wall of his garage-come-office: “Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting.”
We are being mentally prepared for what could be a long night waiting to see New Zealand’s iconic bird.
Okarito is a tiny village on the west coast of New Zealand’s South Island with a historical past. When Abel Tasman first set European eyes on New Zealand in 1642, it was Okarito that he saw. After the discovery of gold in the mid 1800s it became a boom town complete with more than 50 stores and bustling hotels. Its next claim to fame was as the setting for Keri Hulme’s 1985 Booker Prize-winning novel The Bone People. Today Okarito is a tranquil holiday destination with a permanent population of 30, one of whom is Englishman Ian Potter who came to New Zealand for a holiday, fell for the place and decided to stay.
He has since dedicated his life to the conservation of the critical endangered Okarito brown kiwi. Aside from running lowimpact eco tours, he is actively involved in monitoring and protecting the kiwi’s habitat in the South Okarito Forest — a designated kiwi sanctuary and the only breeding ground remaining for this rare and endangered species.
Ian says the “P” word a few more times before we gather around a whiteboard where the sizeable territory of each of the kiwis within the forest is marked out. He then asks us all to listen closely to a recording of the deep squawking call of a female kiwi, followed by the higher pitched wailing male call before we are put to the test of listening to a combined track to try to sort male calls from female calls among the general nocturnal forest noise. Armed with loads of patience, torches and mosquito nets we head off on our expedition.
A roadside sign depicting a kiwi marks the spot where we will start our search. Tonight we will be trying to spot BZ and Beaumont, a breeding pair who live in separate territories adjacent to one another.
As we head down the fire trail, Ian asks us what we know about kiwis. “Nocturnal,” I say. “An excellent sense of smell,” says a confessed kiwi fanatic, Anna. “Flightless,” offers Katie. “All true,” says Ian. “But there are other facts about kiwis that make them different to other birds.”
Ian explains that while most birds have light, hollow bones to allow flight, kiwis have heavier bones containing marrow and strong muscular legs adapted to life on the ground. Unlike other birds, female kiwis have two functioning ovaries and large eggs that make up almost 20 per cent of their body weight. He takes a couple of kiwi feathers from his pocket and asks us to feel their texture while explaining they are more like mammalian fur than true feathers.
He tells us scientists believe kiwis evolved to occupy a habitat and lifestyle that would be filled by a mammal in another part of the world and, as they evolved, kiwis developed features associated more with warm-blooded animals than with birds.
Ian uses a large orange antenna to tune in and locate the kiwis via their electronic monitoring bands. BZ is close by and we stand in single file facing into the forest to listen for his call or the crashing sound of him moving through the undergrowth.
I force my eyes and ears to tune in to the forest environment as the West Coast’s persistent mosquitos buzz and dive, hitting the mosquito net covering my face before zooming away in frustration. I stare and listen so hard for so long I fear I may pass out and I realise why Ian has such a thing for patience.
Just when I feel like I can’t stare any more, I hear Ian call us. We mobilise and trek up the hill in single file, stumbling along the fire break in the dark. Ian meets us and whispers that Beaumont, the female kiwi, has made an appearance. I hear her thrashing around in the undergrowth before the grass at the side of the path parts like a curtain and Beaumont pushes her way through. She skirts along the side of the track, her long beak sniffing the ground in a sweeping motion as she searches for food. She weaves in and out of the scrub, her feathers glimmering in the torchlight.
We continue to watch Beaumont’s journey as she ducks in and out of the forest before making her way down into a gully and out of our sight. We wait in hope Beaumont will return, but there will be no curtain call.
A ringtailed possum emerges from the undergrowth and Ian explains how introduced mammals such as possums — native to Australia — are threatening the unique ecosystem that has allowed species like the kiwi to survive and are an added complication to the conservation efforts he works so hard for.
The Okarito night sky is ablaze with stars and we leave the forest under the bright glow of the Southern Cross. As we drive back toward town Ian compliments us all on our ability to co-operate on the expedition and — you guessed it — our patience.