Many of New Zealand's bird species are endemic to the country, that is, they are not found in any other country. Of the species breeding in New Zealand before humans arrived, 71% were endemic. [1]
Some species are not fully endemic, but are breeding endemic, in that they breed only in New Zealand, but migrate or range elsewhere.
Population status symbols are those of the Red List published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. [2] The symbols and their meanings, in increasing order of peril, are:
LC = least concern NT = near threatened VU = vulnerable EN = endangered CR = critically endangered EX = extinct
BirdLife International has defined the following Endemic Bird Areas in New Zealand:
The following are classified as secondary areas, i.e. they have at least one restricted-range bird species, but do not meet the criteria for Endemic Bird Areas:
These species (and subspecies) are found only in New Zealand. They are listed in alphabetical order by common name, with an indicator of their conservation status.
These species breed only in New Zealand, but are found elsewhere also, so are not fully endemic. They include seabirds that range elsewhere and migratory birds.
The Subantarctic snipe is a species of snipe endemic to New Zealand's subantarctic islands. The Maori call it "Tutukiwi". The nominate race C. a. aucklandica is found on the Auckland Islands. Other subspecies include C. a. meinertzhagenae from the Antipodes Islands, and C. a. perseverance from Campbell Island / Motu Ihupuku. The former subspecies from the Snares Islands has been separated as a full species, the Snares snipe, as have the extinct South Island and North Island snipes.
The Antipodes parakeet or Antipodes Island parakeet is a parrot in the family Psittaculidae that is endemic to the Antipodes Islands of New Zealand. It is one of two parrot species found on the islands, and one of only five ground-dwelling parrots in the world. They are long-living birds that may live up to 10 years of age, but the introduction of mice that compete with them for food was a threat to their survival on the Antipodes Islands until the mice were successfully eradicated from the Islands in 2016. Unusually for parrots, they sometimes prey upon other birds, a trait shared by another New Zealand parrot, the kea.
The austral snipes, also known as the New Zealand snipes or tutukiwi, are a genus, Coenocorypha, of tiny birds in the sandpiper family, which are now only found on New Zealand's outlying islands. There are currently three living species and six known extinct species, with the Subantarctic snipe having three subspecies, including the Campbell Island snipe discovered as recently as 1997. The genus was once distributed from Fiji, New Caledonia and Norfolk Island, across New Zealand and southwards into New Zealand's subantarctic islands, but predation by introduced species, especially rats, has drastically reduced their range.
The Macquarie parakeet, also known as the Macquarie Island parakeet, is an extinct subspecies of the red-crowned parakeet from the subantarctic Macquarie Island, an outlying part of Tasmania, Australia, in the Southern Ocean.
Reischek's parakeet is a small green parrot confined to 21 km2 (8.1 sq mi) Antipodes Island, one of New Zealand’s subantarctic islands, which it shares with a congener, the larger Antipodes parakeet.
Colin Miskelly is a New Zealand ornithologist and museum curator.