Birding Down Under Expedition

Day 1: Queenstown

Guests should make their way to the designated hotel where we will spend the first night of the expedition. This evening there will be an informal get-together at the hotel for dinner; an excellent opportunity to meet fellow adventurers on your voyage and some of our expedition team.

Day 2: Port of Bluff

Today we enjoy breakfast in the hotel restaurant and have the morning free to explore Queenstown before returning to the hotel for lunch and departing for the Port of Bluff to embark your ship. You will have time to settle into your cabin and familiarise yourself with the ship; we will also take the opportunity to conduct a number of safety briefings. You are invited to join the expedition team in the Observation Lounge and up on the Observation Deck as we set our course to The Snares and our adventure begins.

Day 3: The Snares – North East Island

The closest Subantarctic Islands to New Zealand, they were appropriately called The Snares as they were once considered a hazard for sailing ships. Comprising of two main islands and a group of five islands called the Western Chain; they are uninhabited and enjoy the highest protection as Nature Reserves. It is claimed by some that these islands are home to more nesting seabirds than all of the British Isles together. We plan to arrive in the morning, and as landings are not permitted, we will Zodiac cruise along the sheltered eastern side of the main island if the weather and sea conditions are suitable. In the bays, we should see the endemic Snares Crested Penguin, Snares Island Tomtit and Fernbirds. There are hundreds of thousands of Sooty Shearwaters nesting on The Snares; the actual number is much debated. New Zealand Fur Seals can be found on rock platforms around the coast and there will be opportunities to view the forests of large tree daisies Macrolearia lyallii and Brachyglottis stewartiae which forms a canopy over much of the island group. After exploring this archipelago we will continue on our voyage south towards the Auckland Islands.

Day 4: Auckland Islands – Enderby Island

The Auckland Islands group was formed by two volcanoes which erupted some 10-25 million years ago. They have subsequently been eroded and dissected by glaciation creating the archipelago as we know it today. Enderby Island is one of the most beautiful islands in this group and is named after the same distinguished shipping family as one of our previous vessels. This northern most island in the archipelago is an outstanding wildlife and birding location and is relatively easy to land on and walk around. The island was cleared of all introduced animals (pests) in 1994 and both birds and the vegetation, especially the herbaceous plants, are recovering both in numbers and diversity. Our plan is to land at Sandy Bay, one of three breeding areas in the Auckland Islands for the Hooker’s or New Zealand Sea Lion, a rare member of the seal family. Beachmaster bulls arrive on the beach to gather harems and defend them from younger, ambitious males. Hooker’s or New Zealand Sea Lion numbers are in a slow decline and it is now regarded as the most endangered sea lion on the planet. During our day ashore there will be several options, some longer walks, some shorter walks and time to spend enjoying the wildlife. A boardwalk traverses the island to the dramatic western cliffs, from there the ‘long walkers’ will follow the coast and circumnavigate the island. Birds that we are likely to encounter include Southern Royal Albatross, Northern Giant Petrel, Auckland Island Shag, Auckland Island Teal, Auckland Island Banded Dotterel, Auckland Island Tomtit, Bellbird, New Zealand Pipit, Red-crowned Parakeet, Yellow-eyed Penguin and Light-mantled Albatross. There is also a very good chance of seeing the Subantarctic Snipe.

Day 5: At Sea

As we make our way through an area known as the Furious Fifties we will learn more about the flora and fauna as we prepare for our arrival at Macquarie Island. En route there are great birding opportunities which may include the Wandering Albatross, Southern Royal, Black-browed, Campbell, Light-mantled, Salvin’s and Grey-headed Albatross, Northern and Southern Giant Petrel, Sooty Shearwater and Subantarctic Little Shearwater, Fairy, Fulmar and Antarctic Prion. Other species to be on the lookout for include the Soft-plumaged, Mottled, White-headed and White-chinned Petrel, Grey-backed, Wilson’s and Black-bellied Storm-Petrel.

Days 6 to 7: Macquarie Island

The great Australian Antarctic Explorer Sir Douglas Mawson once called Macquarie Island “One of the wonder spots of the world.” You are about to discover why as we spend two days exploring this amazing Island. It was one of the first of the Subantarctic Islands to obtain World Heritage Status and that was largely due to its unique geology. It is one of the few places on earth where mid-ocean crustal rocks are exposed at the surface due to the collision of the Australian and Pacific Plates. The island was discovered in 1810 and was soon ravaged by sealers who introduced various animals including rats, mice, cats and rabbits. The native bird population was virtually eliminated and plants destroyed. The Tasmanian National Parks and Wildlife Service (which administer the island) recently embarked on a very ambitious eradication program which has been successful with a noticeable revival of plants and birds. Macquarie Island is home to four species of penguin, King, Royal (endemic), Gentoo and Eastern Rockhopper. During our visit we will land at two sites (subject of course to weather and sea conditions) and you will get a chance to see, observe and photograph all four species. Macquarie also has a large population of Southern Elephant Seals which in turn provide an important food source for Orca that patrol the coast.

Day 8: At Sea

At sea en route to Campbell Island and time to unwind after the adventures of Macquarie Island. Look for cetaceans and albatross, join a lecture or catch up on your photos and journaling.

Day 9: Campbell Island – Perseverance Harbour

Today we explore Campbell Island, New Zealand's southernmost Subantarctic territory, whose history is as rich as the other islands we visit. Discovered in 1810, it was occupied by sealers who introduced rats and cats, then farmed from 1895 to 1934. Coastwatchers were later stationed there during the war, and the site became a manned NZ Meteorological Service research station until 1995. Farm animals were removed by 1990, vegetation recovered, and cats died out naturally. In an unprecedented large-scale eradication programme, the Department of Conservation successfully removed the rats, clearing the way to reintroduce the endangered Campbell Island Flightless Teal and allowing Subantarctic Snipe to recolonise from nearby islets. The vegetation, which botanist Sir Joseph Hooker called a "Flora display second to none outside the tropics," is superb with a brilliant mix of Megaherbs present. We'll offer walking options from an extended trek to Northwest Bay to an easier route to Col Lyall Saddle, both offering time with nesting Southern Royal Albatross, just one of five species of albatross that breed on the islands, and we should also enjoy the Campbell Island Shag, another endemic species.

Day 10: At Sea

At sea en route to the Antipodes, it is a day for pelagic birding with over twenty species of tubenose possible.

Day 11: Antipodes Islands

The Antipodes group of islands is the most isolated and perhaps the least known of New Zealand’s Subantarctic Islands. Sealers lived here in the decades immediately after their discovery in 1806. The islands are of volcanic origin, but are heavily eroded and very dramatic, especially the western shoreline. The largest of the group is Antipodes Island. Landings are not permitted so we plan to cruise along the coastline by Zodiac where we have a good chance of seeing the Antipodes Parakeet, the largest of New Zealand’s parakeets. This species has an entirely green head. We will also look for the Reischek’s Parakeet, a subspecies of the Red-crowned Parakeet. Good views of both Erect-crested and Eastern Rockhopper Penguins can be expected along the coast where they often breed in mixed colonies and the same sections of coast can hold both New Zealand and Subantarctic Fur Seals.

Day 12: Bounty Islands

We arrive at the incongruously named Bounty Islands, the remote northernmost of the five New Zealand Subantarctic groups, discovered by Captain Bligh just months before the infamous mutiny. Here inhospitable granite knobs, tips of the submerged Bounty Platform, are lashed by the ocean. They are home to thousands of Salvin’s Albatross, Erect-crested Penguins, Fulmar Prions and the endemic Bounty Island Shag – the world’s rarest. We plan to arrive in the early morning and if conditions are suitable we will cruise by Zodiac around the granite outposts to take a closer look at the birds which breed there. New Zealand Fur Seals which were almost hunted to extinction in the Subantarctic Islands are present in large numbers. Sailing towards the Chatham Islands there are opportunities to see a good selection of birdlife. This could include more northerly species such as Cook’s, Pycroft’s and Black-winged Petrels and there is even the chance of Chatham Island Petrel and the Taiko, one of the rarest seabirds on the planet with a population of fewer than 150 birds.

Day 13: Pyramid Rock and South East Island

As we continue toward the Chatham Archipelago, there are excellent opportunities for pelagic birding today with similar species to the previous day as well as White-faced Storm-petrel and Broad-billed Prion. This afternoon we will cruise around spectacular Pyramid Rock, a basalt outcrop south of Pitt Island. This is the only breeding place of the Chatham Island Albatross. During the afternoon we arrive at South East Island. This has to be one of the world’s greatest nature reserves and landings are not permitted. However, we should obtain good views of the very rare New Zealand Shore Plover and Chatham Island Oystercatcher from the Zodiacs as we cruise along the coast. We should also see the Pitt Island Shag which nests on the island.

Day 14: Chatham Islands – Waitangi

The Chatham Archipelago consists of one large island and numerous smaller islands and rocky islets. Only two of the islands are inhabited. They represent New Zealand’s eastern most territory. The islands were originally settled by East Polynesians. In the 1400s the population became isolated and interestingly developed its own distinct culture. The islands were discovered by Europeans in the 1790s. Sealers and settlers followed and then in the 1830s Māori from New Zealand invaded killing and enslaving many of the indigenous people. Today we will visit one of the original private reserves established by a local family on the south coast of the main island where there is a very good chance to see the endemic Chatham Island Pigeon and Warbler. We will travel by local bus to the reserve. Near our landing in Waitangi there is a good chance of seeing the endemic Chatham Island Shag. This afternoon and evening we cruise back along the south coast where we hope to see the Taiko arriving back to the island at dusk.

Days 15 to 16: At Sea

En route to Bluff we will cross the Chatham Rise, a large, relatively shallowly submerged part of the Zealandia continent that stretches east from the South Island of New Zealand. Nutrient rich waters from the south mix with warm northern waters and there is an overlap between northern pelagic species and birds from southern latitudes, so we can expect great pelagic sightings. For those out all day between 20-30 species of tubenose are possible together with a substantial diversity of cetaceans which in this region can include some of the least known beaked whales on the planet. We will recap the highlights of our expedition and enjoy a farewell dinner tonight as we complete the last few miles of our journey.

Day 17: Invercargill/Queenstown

Early this morning we will arrive in the Port of Bluff. After a final breakfast we bid farewell to our fellow voyagers and take a complimentary coach transfer to either Invercargill or Queenstown Airports. In case of unexpected delays due to weather and/or port operations we ask you not to book any onward travel until after midday from Invercargill and after 3pm from Queenstown.

Note: During our voyage, circumstances may make it necessary or desirable to deviate from the proposed itinerary. This can include poor weather and opportunities for making unplanned excursions. Your Expedition Leader will keep you fully informed. Landings at the Subantarctic Islands of New Zealand are by permit only as administered by the Government of New Zealand. No landings are permitted at The Snares, Antipodes or Bounties.