Stewart Island Pelagic Trips

Birding Trips Available 2021 - 22 Season

Full Day 1/2 Day

also note our Port Pegasus day trips offer pelagic bird viewing as well.

Skipper Ty Jenkinson with Alan Davies and Ruth Miller from 'The Biggest Twitch', enjoying a day out on Aurora.

Mark Carwardine on Aurora pelagic trip

Mark Carwardine, zoologist, legendary conservationist, author and photographer on Aurora pelagic tour.

Mark Carwardine with skipper Ty Jenkinson

Mark Carwardine with skipper Ty Jenkinson.

Half day Pelagic Birding Trip

From Halfmoon Bay we cruise out around the muttonbird islands to the east of Stewart Island then head to Wreck Reef where the convergent tides provide a wonderful feeding ground for a variety of pelagic birds. We can then drop you off at Ulva Island to spend the afternoon at this amazing bird sanctuary returning by water taxi or you can come back into Halfmoon Bay on the Aurora. $165pp

Shorter Half day Pelagic Birding Trip

Group tour available (min. 8 pax) - leisurely 3 hour cruise from Halfmoon Bay around the muttonbird islands and Whero Rock then along the shores of Paterson Inlet. Optional drop-off at Ulva Island. $125pp

Full day Pelagic Birding Trip

For a truly wonderful experience we offer group trips to the South & East of Stewart Island, a place not visited by many people. On the cruise you may see Mottled petrels, Antarctic terns, Royal albatross and other uncommon birds. Check availability of trips above or contact us if you have a particular date in mind and we will try and put a trip together. $310pp

Full photographic sightings can be checked out on www.mattjoneswildlifeimages.com.

We offer a pick-up from Ulva Island on most of our afternoon cruises so you can enjoy a morning on Ulva Island before joining the pelagic tour.

white-capped mollymawk

Stewart Island Bird List

Species seen on our recent pelagic trips.

Species	14-Dec	17-Dec	22-Dec	30-Dec	9-Jan	11-Jan	28-Jan	15-Feb	21-Mar	7-Apr
Little pied shag
Pied shag	x	x			x		x			x
Spotted shag	x	x	x	x	x		x			x
Stewart Island shag	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Black-backed gull	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Red billed gull	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Fiordland crested penguin									x
Little blue penguin	x	x	x	x		x	x	x	x	x
Yellow eyed penguin		x		x	x	x		x
Bullers shearwater		x	x
Huttons shearwater
Great shearwater										x
Short tailed shearwater
Sooty shearwater	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Subantarctic little shearwater										x
Black fronted tern							x	x	x	x
White fronted tern	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Antarctic tern
Arctic tern
Brown skua	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Black browed allbatross					x
Bullers albatross		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Campbell Island albatross
Chatham Island albatross
Gibsons albatross
Northern royal albatross	x	x
Salvins albatross	x	x	x		x	x	x	x	x	x
Southern royal albatross	x	x	x		x		x		x	x
Wandering albatross			x
White capped albatross	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Cape petrel	x	x	x	x	x	x	x			x
Cooks petrel	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x		x
Diving petrel	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x		x
Giant petrel - southern	x	x
Grey backed storm petrel			x
Mottled petrel		x		x	x
Northern giant petrel	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Westland petrel
White chinned petrel	x	x		x	x			x
White headed petrel										x
White naped petrel								x
Broad-billed prion		x
Fairy prion	x	x		x	x			x
Salvins prion
Australasian gannet		x	x	x	x					x
Godwit - bar tailed							x	x
Kingfisher
White heron								x
White faced heron								x
NZ Dotterel							x	x	x	x
Pied oyster catcher	x	x	x				x	x	x	x
Variable oyster catcher			x


NZ Sealion	x						x	x
NZ fur seal	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x		x

white-capped or shy mollymawks and Campbell Island mollymawks

Please note that all our trips are weather permitting and also dependent on minimum numbers.

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