ONE WITH NATURE
New Zealand’s Taiaroa Head is an open home to Southern Ocean wildlife.
New Zealand’s Taiaroa Head is an open home to Southern Ocean wildlife.
At Taiaroa Head, on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand, an albatross soars overhead.
The wind blows a strand of hair into my eye. I turn my head to see another albatross glide directly above. I’m close to the royal albatross colony, the world’s only mainland breeding colony. The birds I am seeing are mostly juveniles, but their wingspans are still up to three meters (9.8 feet). When they fly, there is no sound from these finely tuned, aerodynamic birds. As their wings lock into place, their gracious soar is silent.
I hadn’t seen an albatross before. I came hoping to see one albatross, but I’ve already seen 20. The sky is full of them.
BIRDS OF GOOD OMEN
The adolescent birds are coming back to the colony for the first time since leaving their nests. They have spent five years courting potential mates and eventually finding a life partner without once touching land, and will ultimately spend over 90 percent of their life on or over the water.
While the youngsters are preening themselves and practicing their synchronized flying to impress other young albatross, the mature birds are also returning to the colony to meet up with their life partners and mate once again.
A female in the prime of life will produce a chick every two years, starting her journey into motherhood as young as age 9. (The oldest known albatross mother at Taiaroa Head, recorded in 1989, was raising her chick at 61.) Once albatross parents have seen their fledgling leave the nest after nine months, mother and father return to the sea, separately. Many months later they arrive back to the colony, often within days of each other, to mate and raise another chick together.
The albatross colony at Taiaroa Head has been there since 1937. From just one breeding couple and three non-breeding birds, it has grown to 65 breeding pairs and over 130 non-breeding birds. The royal albatross are not at risk, but they are a vulnerable species because of their slow rate of reproduction. Climatic changes and hotter summers have made them more exposed. An albatross chick takes about six days to complete a hatch, leaving them susceptible to fly-strike and heat stress. To help, a sprinkler system has been installed to keep the chicks cool.
A special observation area at the Royal Albatross Centre allows visitors to view the nests and young chicks. Parents can
also be seen coming and going, feeding their fluffy white offspring.
The first chicks for the 2018/19 breeding season have hatched, with a record number of eggs being laid. Albatross live to a great old age producing many chicks. One bird at Taiaroa Head, known as “Grandma,” raised her last chick at the ripe old age of 62 years.
While these immense sea birds are the dominant presence on Taiaroa Head during mating season, they are by no means the only inhabitants.
OUT TO SEA
Out on the water, we pass another beach on the Otago Peninsula and see several giant New Zealand sea lions, also known as Hooker’s sea lions, one of the rarest sea lion species in the world. Basking in the sun, without a care in the world, these huge, sand-covered beasts weigh about 400 kilograms (880 pounds).
Further down the peninsula, not far from the city of Dunedin, is Sandfly Bay — a favorite hangout for Hooker’s sea lions. Here, you can get up close, watching them frolic in and out of the ocean and bask on the beach without a care in the world. Remember to give them space as they can get aggressive if threatened.
Close to Taiaroa Head, we get a better look at the rocky shore. Three New Zealand fur seals, easily recognized by their tiny ears, are sitting on the rock ledge as kelp swirls beneath them. The constant action of tide and sea plant produces a sea mist that keeps the fur seals moist.
A younger male fur seal attempts to climb the rocky shelf to join a cluster of female seals, but a mature bull quickly arrives to nudge him back into the ocean. The older male is protecting his harem. As with the albatross, it’s also breeding season for the fur seals. Soon these females will give birth to their pups. Almost immediately, the bull will mate with them again — however, they won’t become pregnant right away. Although the seal’s gestation period is nine months, delayed implantation in the uterine wall means the pup will be born a full 12 months later. The female will suckle her pup for about 300 days, alternating with foraging trips of up to 20 days at sea.
NEW ZEALAND FUR SEALS ARE EASILY RECOGNIZED BY THEIR TINY EARS.
FLOCKING TOGETHER
Drifting a little further north, we reach Wellers Rock, a vertical cliff. Covered in the most unusual nests, the cliff face is home to the Stewart Island shag, also known as the bronze shag.
These chunky, squawking birds come
and go from chimney pot-shaped nests made out of guano and other organic material. Cemented to the rock, the structures face the prevailing wind to ensure their denizens can take off easily.
Each evening around dusk, another remarkable bird can be seen returning from a day feeding at sea. Taiaroa Head is home to the world’s smallest penguin, the blue penguin. They are about 25 centimeters (9.8 inches) tall and weigh about one kilogram (2.2 pounds).
As the light fades, we patiently wait on the viewing platform and our guide explains how the penguins congregate into small groups called “rafts” before coming ashore.
No sooner does he finish telling us then we see ripples on the water and hear the penguins’ shallow squeal. A final wave washes the swimming birds ashore and they fumble to stand, shaking themselves dry. Exhausted, they shuffle up the beach to their burrows to feed their complaining young.
TAIAROA HEAD IS HOME TO THE WORLD’S SMALLEST PENGUIN, THE BLUE PENGUIN.
Taiaroa Head is also famous for another penguin, the yellow-eyed penguin. This small bird, native to New Zealand, is in danger of extinction, with an estimated population of less than 4,000. It is now the rarest penguin in the world due to deforestation and the introduction of predators, including ferrets and stoats that prey on the chicks. However, a conservation project was established on the Otago Peninsula in 1985 when there were just eight breeding pairs; by 2006, there were 19 pairs in the breeding colony, which continues to grow.
These penguins weigh about 5 to 6 kilograms (11 to 13 pounds) and can reach 20 to 25 years of age. They are the only penguin species that cannot be tamed.
The wildlife of the Southern Ocean is prospering. The world’s only mainland albatross colony has grown significantly, the seal population is flourishing, the sea lions are breeding and the bird life is prolific.
Taiaroa Head may not be your regular zoo, but to see these creatures in their natural habitat is exhilarating.