Nature Heroine - Sheila Natusch and the orchids of Rakiura

I've just seen "No Ordinary Sheila", the documentary about the wonderful and not at all ordinary Sheila Natusch. This documentary was a clever blend of recent interviews and family photos, integrated with archival films from the relevant times in her life of, for example, of childhood on Rakiura / Stewart Island, high school at Invercargill, tertiary studies in Dunedin and work and marriage in Wellington. The documentary makers also used occasional current footage where it conveyed atmosphere, for example, of pupils at Invercargill Girl's High School.

Some interviews show her on a couch in a friend's living room or at the kitchen table talking to another writer or tramper, and it felt that we were present in the room listening to an elderly relative talk about their extraordinary life.

Return to Rakiura - Kiwi

Rakiura - Stewart Island is a special place, it's wild, it's mostly National Park, it's home to many native animals. Best of all it is one place in New Zealand where you can see kiwi during the daytime.

Kiwi are generally nocturnal, they have poor sight and hunt by smell. It is thought they evolved to be nocturnal to avoid the (now-extinct) Haast's Eagle.  I've heard lots of theories about why Tokoeka (the Stewart Island kiwi species) come out during the daytime as well as at night. One is that the summer nights are so short they also need to feed during the daytime, another that because they live in family groups they all get a different shift off the nest. Whatever the reason it makes this the best place in New Zealand to see kiwi.

On my first trip, I was tantalised by hearing calls at night and, in the morning, a beach covered in footprints.

Kiwi footprints on the beach

Return to Rakiura - Stewart Island

Sunrise from Fred's Camp

Rakiura means 'glowing skies' and the soft pastel colours in the sky around Stewart Island on my recent visit showed again and again the appropriateness of this Maori place name. Views like this sunrise above were nearly enough to turn this writer to taking up water-colour painting!

In Praise of DOC Huts

We have a unique system of public backcountry huts in New Zealand. From poky, smoky huts etched with history through to Great Walk palaces with solar lighting, these huts provide much needed shelter on our tramping tracks. Often a convenient day's walk apart, most provide the basics of bunks, benches, rainwater tanks and a tap, with an outdoor toilet at a pong-free distance.

There's nothing quite like the sight of a hut in the distance after a tough day on the trail. Glimpse it in the distance through the bush or across the bay and suddenly your pack feels lighter, the rain less persistent, and hunger more bearable.

But best of all is the view from the hut, having been on the move all day, you can now sit and enjoy the view out to sea, up the river, or deep into the bush interior.

The huts on the North-West Circuit of Stewart Island, are all in inspired locations. Each hut we came to had its own delightful setting. Thanks DOC!

Ulva Island - New Zealand island sanctuary

Well worth a visit, Ulva Island/Te Wharawhara deserves to be better known.

Ulva Island

Being close to main centres: Tiritiri Matangi and Kapiti Island get more publicity. But Ulva Island has some wonderful points of difference. Situated close to Oban on Stewart Island, here you might see the Stewart Island Robin (Toutouwai), South Island Saddleback (Tieke), Brown Creeper (Pipipi), and Yellowhead (Mohua), none of which can be seen on the North Island sanctuaries. If you are lucky you might even see a Stewart Island kiwi (Tokoeka).

Oystercatchers at the Beach

It is autumn and there are four noisy variable oystercatchers on our beach. These are the parent birds photographed in spring. Now they have two teenagers hanging out with them. The younger birds still need their parents help to get enough food. It is quite an art to cracking open a shells with their beak and the young ones have to learn how to do this.

Kaka in the Garden

There are some pretty unusual and rare birds that can be seen in some gardens. Imagine finding a kiwi in your garden! One place that could happen is Oban, the small town on Stewart Island/Rakiura. About 400 people live in Oban, and late at night residents and visitors can hear kiwi screeching in the parks and in the gardens. See Stewart Island Brown Kiwi.

Another unusual and rare bird that can be seen in Oban's gardens during the daytime is the kaka.

Stewart Island Brown Kiwi - Tokoeka

Stewart Island Brown Kiwi - southern Tokoeka - are a very special kiwi. These beautiful birds are special for several reasons.

Unlike other kiwi, southern Tokoeka are active during the daytime. This means a visitor to Stewart Island has more of a chance of seeing kiwi in the wild, than on the North or South Islands. My opportunity came on a dull morning near the old Long Harry Hut site on the North-West Circuit. Between 9am and 10am we saw 6 kiwi, and I don't just mean that we caught the fleeting glimpse of a brown backside in the undergrowth. When we sighted a kiwi we kept quite still and were able to watch then feeding, and were witness to what we thought was a territory dispute between some juveniles.

Follow that kiwi

This is a ‘kiwi’ nature blog, sharing my observations with people young and old who are curious about the New Zealand natural environment.

These footprints are from a real kiwi on Stewart Island.