Shorebirds

Oystercatchers

With its bright orange beak it’s hard to miss the vocal variable oystercatcher, tōrea. The Variable oystercatchers seen here are solid black and often about in pairs. They breed in late September/October until March, and are quite territorial. The young juveniles form large flocks in the tidal zones. Oystercatchers are long-lived, with some birds reaching 30+ years of age. South Island pied oystercatchers, or just SIPOs, are black above and white underneath. They breed in the South Island and spend the late summer and winter at Ohiwa. The name oystercatcher was coined in North America in the early 18th century, but, they have a much more varied diet than just oysters.

 

Gulls

There are three types of gulls in the harbour. A small colony of black-billed gulls, Larus bulleri, (the rarest gull in the world) live here together with their more numerous cousins the Red-billed gulls, Tarapunga. Black-backed gulls, Karoro, are scavengers. It’s important to keep their numbers low as they are a serious threat to endangered shorebirds, predating on eggs and chicks.

 

Terns

The White-fronted tern, Tara, breed in New Zealand and then head off to South Eastern Australia for the winter months. Favourite breeding spots are at Whangakōpikopiko/Tern Island, Ōhiwa Spit and a small shellbank in the harbour, from September with the birds fledging before Christmas. They are easily distinguished from the much larger Caspian terns, Taranui, which have bright orange red bills. Caspian terns are often seen flying five to ten metres above the sea, head down, watching for small fish. Once a fish is spotted, they stall their flight and dive steeply, plunging into the sea to catch their prey. An increasing colony of Caspian terns breed on a small shellbank within Ōhiwa Harbour.