New Zealand Natives

With The Hobbit opening soon, thought I would do a post on species known to the inhabitants of Middle Earth, also known as New Zealand which is where The Hobbit and the whole Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed.

There are many birds that are special to New Zealand and the surrounding islands.  Of course the iconic kiwi is maybe the most well known.  New Zealanders are known as kiwis and the bird is the national symbol of the country.  Kiwis don't fly and lay the largest egg in relation to their body size of any bird in the world.  Ouch!

North Island Brown Kiwi   Source:  Wikipedia

Known as the Korimako or Makomako to the Maori people, the New Zealand bellbird is a common sight and feeds on fruit, nectar, and insects.  This bird supposedly got its name because it has a song that sounds like bells ringing.  You can click here to see a video and see what you think about that.

Female bellbird   Source:  Wikipedia

Male bellbird   Source:  Wikipedia

The black stilt is one of the rarest wading birds in the world and is recognized by its red legs.  Youngsters have a white breast, neck and head with a black patch around the eyes and might be mistaken for a totally different species.

Black stilt   Source:  Wikipedia

Another endemic water bird is the blue duck which prefers fast flowing mountain rivers and nests in hollow logs and small caves.  It is a reluctant flyer and is endangered due to dammed rivers, predators, and competition for food.  Even though its called a blue duck, it is more dark gray than blue.  It is featured on the back of the New Zealand $10 bill.

Blue duck   Source:  Wikipedia

The kakapo or night parrot is also endemic to New Zealand.  To read more about it in a separate post click here.  To learn more about the Fiordland crested penguin, click here. 

The Fiordland crested is not the only penguin that lives in New Zealand.  Fitting for Middle Earth, the little penguin or fairy penguin also inhabits the southern coast of Australia as well as coastal areas of New Zealand.  At just a foot tall, it is the smallest species of penguin; the female matures at two years old and the male at three years.  It is also called the blue penguin because of its plumage.

Fairy penguin   Source:  Wikipedia

The smallest tern in this area is the New Zealand fairy tern, also very endangered as there are only a few breeding pairs left in the country.

New Zealand Fairy Tern   Source:  New Zealand Dept. of Conservation

The tuatara definitely looks like something from Middle Earth (just add wings and it could pass for a dragon, albeit a very small one); it is a reptile that even though it resembles a lizard is its own distinct species.   It has the slowest reproductive rate and growth rate of any other reptile - taking 10 to 20 years to become sexually active.  It also has a lower body temperature than other reptiles and hibernates in the winter.  A tuatara named Henry is over 110 and still reproductively active.  Click here for a video with more information on Henry.

Tuatara ("Henry")  Source:  Wikipedia

New Zealand also has an endemic species of sea lion - the most threatened in the world.  The New Zealand sea lion, is also known as Hooker's sea lion.  Squid is a favorite menu item and they have a blunter nose and shorter whiskers than other sea lions.

New Zealand sea lion   Source:  Wikipedia

There are 21 species (and 51 subspecies) of amber snails only found in New Zealand's forests and grasslands and are some of the largest land snails in the world.  Their shells can be as large as a man's fist and come in many patterns and colors.

Powelliphanta or amber snail  Source: NZ Dept. of Conservation

 

There are many other species that can only be found in Middle Earth, a great reason to go visit New Zealand!  You can click here to read about more of them.