Zoologist, author, photographer, conservationist, TV presenter and Discover the World co-founder Mark Carwardine visited New Zealand for the TV series ‘Last Chance to See’, where his encounter with a native parrot (kakapo) created a YouTube sensation. Mark returned to ‘the land of the long white cloud’ in search of the rare and endangered wildlife of New Zealand including the charming ‘Small Five’.
I’ve just been on a whirlwind tour, travelling the length and breadth of New Zealand in search of a particularly outlandish menagerie of animals dubbed the ‘Small Five’.
1. Tuatara
2. Hector’s dolphin
Number two on the list was Hector’s dolphin, the smallest and one of the rarest marine dolphins in the world. I found several (or, rather, they found me) at the entrance to Akaroa Harbour, a delightful seaside village on the Banks Peninsula. They were the tiniest dolphins I had ever seen – small enough to fit inside a bathtub, with room to spare – and were dressed smartly in black, grey and white, with dark face masks and inappropriately large, black, rounded dorsal fins. Everyone on board was laughing and whooping and cheering as they put on the kind of show that only dolphins can do.
“The tiniest dolphins I had ever seen – small enough to fit inside a bathtub”
3. Kea
4. Yellow-eyed penguin
Next on the list was another rare bird, the beautiful yellow-eyed penguin. I drove what was left of my hire car to the beautiful Otago Peninsula, a short scenic drive along a meandering coastal road from Dunedin. In a few days, I had wonderful close encounters with the penguins at appropriately-named Penguin Place (which has a unique system of hides, tunnels and covered walkways to view the birds up-close), as well as on a Yellow-eyed Penguin Trust reserve and at a private conservation area run by Elm Wildlife Tours.
“It has a unique system of hides, tunnels and covered walkways to view the birds up-close”
5. Kiwi
Start planning your holiday
Follow in Mark’s footsteps on our Wildlife Encounters holiday. This 21-day independent holiday is the ultimate self-drive touring option for nature enthusiasts.
Contact our team of accredited New Zealand Travel Specialists and start planning your adventure today.
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