Chestnut Munia

Very large and powerful owl with obvious ear tufts, deep orange eyes, and finely streaked pale buffy underparts. Active mainly at night, but can be seen perched up on prominent lookouts at dusk, searching for prey. Can be found roosting during the day in shady canopy or caves. Pairs often duet, with the male giving a deep, resounding hoot and the female giving a hoarser, higher-pitched one. Inhabits a wide range of habitats, from forests to rocky canyons, but generally abundant nowhere.

Very small coastal tern with forked tail. Nests on sandy beaches, where it is sensitive to disturbance. Very similar to Little Tern, which overlaps in range in parts of southern Australia. In breeding plumage, note yellow bill (in southern Australia lacking black tip) and orange-yellow legs. In contrast to Little Tern, Fairy has a gap between the black in front of eyes and the bill (in breeding Little, the black extends to the bill). In nonbreeding plumage, bill much darker. Hunts by flying low over the water and plunging down to snatch prey from the surface. New Zealand subspecies very rare and breeds only at four sites on the east coast of the southern Northland.

Elegant, long-tailed bird with a gray back, pale underparts, and a black chest band. White outer tail is conspicuous in flight. Found along streams, mainly within montane forest. Feeds by walking along the ground, bobbing its tail constantly. Call is a buzzy “tseeet”. Song is a complex and beautiful jumble of high notes and trills. Similar to Cape Wagtail but has gray rather than brown upperparts and has more white in the wings and tail. Also similar to Gray Wagtail but lacks yellow on the underparts.