Flock of Pelicans Arrive!

zooboy28

zooboy28

Well-Known Member
A flock of thirteen Australian Pelicans have arrived in the country, taking the total population to fourteen!

They are not actually in a zoo though, they are self-introduced, and have taken up residence near Dargaville, in the north of the North Island. It is considered 'not impossible' that the birds could establish a population here. I think their chances of success would probably be bolstered by their relocation to a zoo however...

Source: Feathered Aussies breeze in to settle this side of Ditch - National - NZ Herald News

Some Australian migrants have made a small contribution to reversing the flow of traffic across the Tasman.

Thirteen Pelicans have made New Zealand their home, settling on the banks of the Northern Wairoa River, known as the Big Muddy, near Dargaville. The flock is exciting birdwatchers and locals, who would normally be able to see pelicans only in a zoo.

Experts believe the rare visitors could start breeding here and make the Northland river their permanent home.

"Nothing is impossible," said a Massey University zoology lecturer, Dr Phil Battley, who believes the birds made their way here on an "unhelpful wind".

Dr Battley said the birds would need an adequate food supply for several months, and undisturbed sandbanks to nest on.

He said there were at least four cases of the Australian pelican species drifting over to New Zealand before, one involving three birds, but the flock of 13 in Kaipara was thought to be a record.

Professor Richard Kingsford, a University of New South Wales expert on pelicans, also believes the birds could make New Zealand their permanent home, "if there is sufficient food supply".

The Northern Wairoa river is known to have a rich supply of mullet which is thought to be a favourite food of the pelicans, he said.

The managing director of Kaipara Water Transport, Wayne Eyles, spotted the visitors as he cruised along the river more than a week ago and has seen them every day since.

"I couldn't believe it when I saw them at first. I've been on the ocean nearly all my life in New Zealand and I've never seen a pelican before."

Mr Eyles said the birds were in two groups, six at the Ruawai site and seven spotted at the Aratapu bank.
Click to expand...
 
there are more than thirteen. There's one up at Kerikeri as well, and there may be more in the Kaipara flock (at various times it has been seen as being 6, 13 and 14 [but not including the Kerikeri bird which has stayed put where it is]).

It's actually highly unlikely the pelicans will establish here (the paper is being liberal with the information they have been given: "nothing is impossible" is not the same as "experts believe the rare visitors could start breeding here"!!).
 
I forgot to mention (for NZers), there *may* be a story about the birds on Campbell Live tonight.....


EDIT: but of course there wasn't after all.
 
Last edited:
I saw the fourteen-strong flock last week (well, thirteen of them anyway: the fourteenth was off downriver because someone else saw that one alone earlier in the day). Also had a look for the one that was seen recently at Whangamai but it seems to have moved on (this one may be the Kerikeri one moving southwards).

Really magnificent seeing these here. Very rarely do you see vagrant birds in New Zealand in a flock situation. Usually it is one lone duck or ibis, looking pretty sad and lost, but these pelicans just looked “right”, behaving perfectly normally, on a muddy mangrove-lined river. Perfect.

http://www.zoochat.com/680/australian-pelicans-pelecanus-conspicillatus-292239/
http://www.zoochat.com/680/australian-pelicans-pelecanus-conspicillatus-292240/
http://www.zoochat.com/680/australian-pelicans-pelecanus-conspicillatus-292242/
http://www.zoochat.com/680/australian-pelicans-pelecanus-conspicillatus-292241/
 
zooboy28 said:
Presumably from the "Dargaville 13" (the penguin flock that arrived last year, not the serial killers!). I'm not in Auckland atm unfortunately, hopefully they fly a bit further south (or some more pop over!).
Click to expand...
14*, and they were pelicans :p



*the press keep saying 13 but there were definitely 14 of them in that flock (all 14 were seen by a number of birders), as well as at least one extra one elsewhere.
 
Chlidonias said:
14*, and they were pelicans :p



*the press keep saying 13 but there were definitely 14 of them in that flock (all 14 were seen by a number of birders), as well as at least one extra one elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Oh. Possibly I need more mixer with my vodka! :D
 
a single group of 18 pelicans has been reliably reported from Tapora (on the Kaipara harbour) a couple of days ago, so goodness knows how many are actually in NZ at the moment.

I don't think anyone's seen the Kerikeri one for ages.

The rumour round Dargaville also is that possibly four of the 14-strong flock there have been shot in the last week or so.
 
Is hunting /pouching then such a problem in New Zealand ? I know about hunting the introduced species ( deer, possum ) but pelicans........? Is there some kind of law that protect these animals or are the complete "law-free" ? In that case it even would be better to try to catch them and place them in a zoo.
By the way, are there already captive ( Australian ) pelicans in New Zealand ?
 
vogelcommando said:
Is hunting /pouching then such a problem in New Zealand ? I know about hunting the introduced species ( deer, possum ) but pelicans........? Is there some kind of law that protect these animals or are the complete "law-free" ? In that case it even would be better to try to catch them and place them in a zoo.
By the way, are there already captive ( Australian ) pelicans in New Zealand ?
Click to expand...
there is one (Australian) pelican in captivity in NZ, an old one at Wellington Zoo.

The pelicans wild in NZ are fully-protected by law, but some people like to shoot things they aren't supposed to and unless they are caught in the act - or it can be proven that they have done so - then there's not much that can be done. The pelicans have also made it their habit to steal fish from set-nets in the river so there was always a concern some angry fisherman might deal to them. Duck-shooting season starts in a few days, and there is a real fear that pelicans may be shot accidentally (or "accidentally"). The Department of Conservation has already released warnings that pelicans are not allowed to be shot during the season.

(I should emphasise that there is no concrete evidence that any pelicans have yet been shot, but that is what is being said by local townspeople up that way).
 
Chlidonias said:
a single group of 18 pelicans has been reliably reported from Tapora (on the Kaipara harbour) a couple of days ago, so goodness knows how many are actually in NZ at the moment.
Click to expand...

a flock of seven pelicans was photographed today at Parengarenga at the northern tip of the North Island (about 180km north of Dargaville). Perhaps some of the Kaipara birds or perhaps another group entirely.
 
Rare visitor fatally shot - National - NZ Herald News
A pelican - one of only 20 believed to be in the country - has been found shot dead on the banks of the Waikato River.

Biosecurity contractor Philip Mabin, who found the dead bird, told the Herald on Sunday he could hardly believe his eyes when he spotted three rare pelicans on the banks of the river 10 days ago.

Te Papa vertebrates curator Colin Miskelly said the birds were probably part of a group of 18 that migrated to New Zealand from Australia last year. They have been seen almost exclusively in Northland.

But Mabin's joy turned to despair five days later when he found one of the birds lying dead, peppered with shotgun pellets.

Mabin spends most days working along the Waikato River, and he knows it's a dangerous place for birdlife.

"When I saw the pelicans, I thought they were running a big risk being on the river. There's injured birds out there all the time. If you're working on the river you get to see a lot of carcasses.

"But you'd have to be pretty dumb to do what [the shooter] did. I was sad and pissed off because I knew it couldn't be an accident. It's so different to any bird that you're allowed to shoot," Mabin, himself a recreational hunter, said.

He found the pelican, sex as yet unknown, curled up close to the river's edge about 1km upstream of the Rangiriri Bridge.

It looked like it was sleeping, but the multiple pellet wounds in its body told a different story, Mabin said.

"It had gone there to die, it didn't die straight away."

Pelicans have been seen in New Zealand just five times since 1890, and never in such large numbers, Miskelly said.

Department of Conservation Waikato conservancy spokesman Des Williams said pelicans were protected and the person responsible for the death could be prosecuted.

"Yes it is duck shooting season, but there are still many native species flying about our wetlands that are absolutely protected, and for good reason. Let's hope this incident serves as a timely reminder for all game-bird hunters about the need to positively identify their targets.

"It is particularly disappointing that such a rare visitor to our country should meet its end that way."
Click to expand...
 
it has now been a full two years since the pelicans arrived in New Zealand (in August 2012) and they are still here, barring one or perhaps a few more which have been illegally shot. There aren't many vagrant birds which actually stay long-term (of any species, anywhere in the world). Perhaps they may even attempt breeding.
 
Chlidonias said:
There aren't many vagrant birds which actually stay long-term (of any species, anywhere in the world). Perhaps they may even attempt breeding.
Click to expand...

I think any birds that stay that long will attempt to breed sooner or later. They can't just not ever try to breed again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top