WILDLIFE
Thanks to the subtropical climate and sheltered waters there is an abundance of marine life in the Bay of Islands, including dolphins, seals, seabirds, and many species of fish. The terrain under water is relatively volcanic, having formed great caves and caverns popular with divers. Attached to the rocks and boulders is a forest of kelp quite different to tropical reefs in other parts of the world, adding to the uniqueness of the Bay of Islands and its marine inhabitants. The Bay of Islands also has 2 historically rich shipwreck sites each with their own unique eco-system: the Rainbow Warrior, which was gifted to the sea by Greenpeace after it was bombed and now lies as an artificial reef at the Cavelli Islands, and the HMNZS Canterbury, a former navy ship, resting in Deep Water Cove near Cape Brett.
Little Blue Penguin
The smallest of all penguins (up to 30-33 cm tall), named after their slate-blue plumage. Their maori name is Korora. Fun fact: Russell’s maori name is Kororareka which literally means ‘how sweet is the blue penguin’.
Dolphins
The Bay of Island is home to two species of dolphins: the common dolphin and the bottle nose dolphin. You can tell them apart by their size and fins. The bottle nose is the larger one of the two, with a relatively short beaks, a hooked dorsal fin and they have dark or light grey backs. The common dolphin is smaller and has taller dorsal fins and is mostly recognizable by its very distinctive pale side patches.
Long-finned Pilot Whales
Officially a member of the dolphin family, they are very social in nature and often seen in groups ranging from about 20 to 150 individuals. And occasionally of over a thousand individuals. Have even been seen socializing with bottlenose dolphins. They are named after their long pectoral fins.
Orca’s
Every few weeks orca’s visit the Bay. And when they visit, the dolphins seem to leave…
They are majestic animals, easy to spot thanks to their high dorsal fins and black backs with white patterns on their stomach. Another name for them is killer whales, though they are actually members of the dolphin family. They feed on stingrays and will hunt on dolphins.
Seals
Most common are the New Zealand fur seals. They mainly feed at night which is why you’ll mostly see them dozing during the day.
Stingrays
You can spot some of the largest stingrays in the world up here, weighing over 300kg and up to 3 metres across. There are three species cruising NZ waters: the long-tailed stingray, the short-tailed stingray, and the Eagle stingray.
Fish
There is an abundance of fish like snapper, trevally, kingfish, kahawai in the bay. Also, game fishing is very popular with marlins and tuna present in the waters of the bay.
Shellfish
Gathering kai moana or sea food is still very popular. You will often see people wading in the water or clambering around rocky shores, looking for pipi’s, scallops, mussels, oysters (available all year round but best in spring).
Birds
Diving gannets, noisy seagulls, and petrels, the birdlife in the Bay of Islands is amazing. Shore birds you will most likely see are oyster catchers, pied shags, herons, and the endangered dotterels. In forests and on the islands, you will hear a mixture of birdsong from tui’s, piwakawaka (fantails), kotare (kingfishers), ruru’s and kereru. And on your walks, you might encounter some cheeky weka, pukeko or Californian quails.
On the image below you find some of the reintroduced species you might see and/or hear on the islands. Credit image: D. Markin
Kiwi
Russell is also home to the North Island kiwi, the kiwi subspecies that is widespread in the northern two thirds of the North Island and is the most common kiwi bird. It holds the world record for laying the largest egg relative to its body size. Being flightless birds, kiwis are extremely vulnerable: studies show that on average only 5% of kiwi chicks survive to adulthood. But in areas with active pest management, survival rates can be far higher. On the Russell Peninsula, with the help and protection efforts of the Russell Kiwi Protection Project – catching predators, placing nest boxes and monitoring - kiwi birds seem to be doing a lot better. Though still hardly seen, your chances are pretty high to hear these nocturnal birds at night!
Weka
The weka is a large brown flightless bird with a famously feisty and curious personality. It is fully protected on mainland New Zealand. Unlike kiwi, weka’s are active during the day. Their distinctive and loud call ‘coo-et’ is usually heard at dusk and dawn. The weka in the Bay of Islands are called North Island weka. They were once widespread but are now only found in a few regions, one of them the Russell peninsula. Since 2000 they have been released near Russell in the Whirinaki Forrest and have been thriving, so you have a good chance encountering them while visiting Russell.
Insects
Giant Weta (wetapunga)
Giant Weta, or wetapunga, are the mammoths of the insect world. And since December 2020 - after an absence of 180 years! – they are again living in the Bay of Islands. Through a partnership between Auckland Zoo – which runs a breeding and release program for giant weta - and Project Island Song, so far over 200 wetapunga have been reintroduced to Urupukapuka, Moturua and Motuarohia Islands. This is part of 3-year reintroduction programme.
Endemic to New Zealand, the wetapunga has been around for over 190 million years. Once widespread, they have been reduced to worrying numbers due to pest-predators like rats, mice, cats, and hedgehogs. They are now considered to be at risk of extinction, having been eradicated from the mainland in the 1800s. Currently there are just a few populations remaining on some of NZ islands like Little Barrier Island (Hauturu). And now they are back in the Bay of Islands too, where they play a vital role in maintaining forest ecosystems via the plants they feed on and the seeds they distribute.
Credit image below: D. Markin - Project Island Song Wetapunga translocation Day, December 2020
