Wildlife of Fiordland, New Zealand
Fiordland holds the world's last wild populations of the takahē — a flightless swamphen once thought extinct — plus kea (the world's only alpine parrot), Fiordland crested penguins, and one of two resident bottlenose dolphin pods in New Zealand.
Best timeNovember – April (Southern Hemisphere spring/summer).
- 1Fiordland has the world's rarest parrot — the kākāpō — on offshore islands.
- 2Bottlenose dolphins live inside Doubtful Sound year-round.
- 3The takahē, a flightless bird thought extinct, was rediscovered in Fiordland in 1948.
Signature species
Curated for Fiordland, New Zealand, each tagged with its IUCN Red List status.
- CR
Kākāpō
Strigops habroptilus
~250 birds — every one is named.
- EN
Takahē
Porphyrio hochstetteri
- VU
Fiordland crested penguin
Eudyptes pachyrhynchus
- LC
Bottlenose dolphin
Tursiops truncatus
- EN
Kea
Nestor notabilis
IUCN codes — EX extinct · EW extinct in wild · CR critically endangered · EN endangered · VU vulnerable · NT near threatened · LC least concern · DD data deficient
Dos & don'ts
Local etiquette that keeps wildlife wild.
Do
- Book Milford Track months ahead — it's the world's finest walk.
- Support DOC predator control in Fiordland.
- Keep distance — use zoom or binoculars, never bait animals closer.
- Stay on marked trails to avoid trampling nests, burrows and plants.
Don't
- Don't feed kea at car parks — human food is killing them.
- Don't leave gear on the ground — kea will destroy it.
- Never feed wildlife — human food changes behaviour and shortens lives.
- Don't share exact locations of nests, dens or rare species online.
Spotted here lately
Live from iNaturalist — research-grade observations within 150km, last 30 days.
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