Birds in New Zealand
71 species listed · birdwatchers' records, 2019–2024
Our list for New Zealand has 71 bird species recorded regularly there: 34 residents, 24 summer visitors, 3 winter visitors, 7 passage migrants and 3 scarce visitors.
The list comes from 6.0 million birdwatchers' records from 2019–2024, shared through the eBird Observation Dataset on GBIF. A bird is listed when it was recorded in at least 3 of the 6 years and has a Birdfact species guide, so more species occur here than are listed; the months show when it is recorded most years.
Birds to see in New Zealand in September
51 species on our list are recorded regularly this month. These are the ones birdwatchers record most often.

Blackbird
Resident

House Sparrow
Resident

Chaffinch
Resident

Common Starling
Resident

Song Thrush
Resident

Mallard
Resident

European Goldfinch
Resident

Dunnock
Resident
Arriving in September: Sooty Shearwater, White-chinned Petrel, Pacific Golden-Plover, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Glossy Ibis, Hudsonian Godwit, Rose-ringed Parakeet.
Through the year
Species recorded regularly in New Zealand each month: most in November (65), fewest in August (46). Choose a month to see its birds.
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Get Your Free DigestAll 71 birds on the list
Showing 24–46 of 71 species

Little Penguin
Eudyptula minorLC
Recorded all year

Greylag Goose
Anser anserLC
Recorded all year

Red Knot
Calidris canutusNT
Recorded all year

Ruddy Turnstone
Arenaria interpresLC
Recorded all year

Great Crested Grebe
Podiceps cristatusLC
Recorded all year

Arctic Jaeger
Stercorarius parasiticusLC
Regularly Oct–May

Wild Turkey
Meleagris gallopavoLC
Recorded all year

Great White Egret
Ardea albaLC
Recorded all year
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Pacific Golden-Plover
Pluvialis fulvaLC
Regularly Sep–Apr

Indian Peafowl
Pavo cristatusLC
Recorded all year

Yellowhead
Mohoua ochrocephalaNT
Recorded all year

Muscovy Duck
Cairina moschataLC
Recorded all year

Mute Swan
Cygnus olorLC
Recorded all year

Little Owl
Athene noctuaLC
Recorded all year

Sharp-tailed Sandpiper
Calidris acuminataVU
Regularly Sep–Apr

Red Junglefowl
Gallus gallusLC
Recorded all year

Whimbrel
Numenius phaeopusLC
Recorded all year

Little Egret
Egretta garzettaLC
Recorded all year

Rook
Corvus frugilegusLC
Recorded all year

Southern Rockhopper Penguin
Eudyptes chrysocomeVU
Regularly Nov–Mar

Little Tern
Sternula albifronsLC
Regularly Oct–Jun

Cirl Bunting
Emberiza cirlusLC
Recorded all year

Pectoral Sandpiper
Calidris melanotosLC
Regularly Nov–Apr
Frequently Asked Questions
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made