@Kirstie
on farm of course we have jersey cows, young stock and bulls. at Hukawai Lodge we have cayuga ducks (flightless with metallic green feathers laying blue eggs), birman cats (very cute), araucana chickens (lavender coloured, laying blue eggs), flemish giant rabbits. and more poultry, angora goats, gotland sheep and other animals coming.
like everyone who lives in the country we have a lot of wild life. there is always a couple or three kea on farm - they are the only alpine parrot in the world and one of the most intelligent birds. they're also endangered. tui is a beautiful bird with an even more beautiful song sheet. they can also imitate humans and noises they might hear in the bush such as a chainsaw. i have never seen a pic on the net that picks up the birds beauty. kaka are large parrots also endangered. whereas the kea population is something between 3-7000, kaka number about 600. ruru (native morepork) are nocturnal and very shy, but at night you can hear them especially in spring and they come out of the bush to the farm in search of prey. its absolutely magic to catch one in your headlights. keruru are large wood pigeons. they have the most awesome flying sound. in late spring they are so fat you can find them on the ground grazing in flocks of around 10+. A group of about 10 return to Hukawai Lodge every spring. The NZ falcon is endangered and its pretty rare now to see them flying around this area. By comparison the hawk is a common sight. They will land on fence posts and cruise around the small animals much to their disgust.
the kotuku (white heron) although not native, live nearby in the only breeding colony and sanctuary in NZ. you don't tend to see them so much around Hukawai Lodge but they are on farm searching for food. they like ducklings and elvers. pukeko (swamp hens) are a typical NZ native blue. like ducks they graze pastures. they nest share and creche rear. the largest nest i've found contained 20 eggs. paradise ducks also not native, pair for a lifetime and we have a couple who believe themselves to be permanent residents. every spring the 2x pairs of oyster catchers return, the pieds and the variables. they fight over the territory at the pond which has a large area of gravel which next week will disappear. so i guess they will fight over the parking lot at the back of Hukawai Lodge. no one here likes plovers. they are crazy. there used to be a couple of australian magpies about 10 years ago. now there is a flock of +20. they are aggressive and dominating and their calls sound alien here.
its unlikely you could see a kiwi at Hukawai Lodge. but at the bottom of the farm at the foothills you can hear the one Rowi who found its way out of Okarito forest. Rowi are endangered with a population of under 600. they are gathered up as eggs, incubated and grown in Franz Josef, transferred to a predator free island in the Marlborough Sounds at the top of the South Island and returned and released in Okarito forest once they are minimum 1kg weight. the rowi baby is extremely beautiful. their feathers are softer than anything i know.
the smaller native birds are fantails which are always fascinating. they have little fat fluffy bodies, either brown or more rarely black. as they fly they are always fighting against falling. bellbirds are plain brown birds with a wonderful song that can sometimes be mistaken for tui.
deer come down out of the mountains on to farm. its only usual to see them if you're working on farm in the paddocks close to the bush. some times especially young males will venture into the interior of the farm. we quite enjoy venison. also coming out of the mountains to graze the sweet pastures of farm land is a mob of about 20 chamois.
in all the creeks, which look like rivers to people who tend to come from less rainfall geographical areas, you can find trout and salmon. at the bottom of the farm close to Lake Mapourika across the road from Hukawai Lodge is a breeding area used by trout. salmon swim further into the farm before breeding.
🙂
Em
Hukawai Lodge
Franz Josef, NZ
https://www.airbnb.co.nz/rooms/15418840