A pet cockatoo has enjoyed a luxury cruise around New Zealand after it stowed away on a visiting ship.
New Zealand biosecurity officials were alerted about the errant Australian galah as the ship approached Milford on January 25.
The Ministry for Primary Industries' border clearance services manager Andrew Spelman said the ship could only enter the country if the bird was put down or locked in the vessel.
Luckily for the feathered stowaway it was able to be confined to an unoccupied cabin where it was subject to strict conditions.
The galah could have been carrying avian diseases that were a threat to New Zealand's native birds.