NZ travel: The Dunedin coast where wildlife reigns supreme

Visitors can get an up-close look at the world's smallest species of penguin. Photo / supplied

Lyndon Perriman from Blue Penguins Pukekura Wildlife Tours talks about one of Otago's most important headlands, and its super cute inhabitants.

Blue Penguins Pukekura operates tours at Pukekura/Taiaroa Head at the end of the Otago Peninsula, and more specifically at a small beach on this headland called Takiharuru/Pilots Beach. Dunedin is well-known for its wildlife, but the jewel in the crown is Pukekura, home to penguins, albatross, seals and sea lions.

A windswept wild headland, its reserves contain more than 10,000 seabirds. The main attraction is the smallest penguin in the world, but guests also get to see and hear about a range of other species on the tour. An added bonus is because our tours occur when penguins return to land from the sea at dusk, we often get some great views of the night sky.

Nightfall at Takiharuru is the perfect time to spot the local penguins. Photo / Jodie Gibson

Here, penguin viewing is guaranteed. Numbers vary over the year, and there are often more than 200 birds over spring and summer. Their arrival on the beach is timed with dusk, making for later nights over summer when birds are arriving at around 10pm, compared to winter when it's getting dark much earlier in the evening.

While there are more birds in the warmer months, March and April is also an excellent time to visit as that's when the birds go through their annual moult. Penguins need to put on extra weight to survive the moult, and at twice their normal body weight, watching them trying to walk is amusing.

The birds take their nightly walk along the beach. Photo / Jodie Gibson

The reserve is a hugely significant piece of land to local Māori, with connections going back to some of the first people to reach New Zealand. Our purpose is to look after the land and look after the wildlife. The viewing platform and walkway through the reserve are freely open to guests during the day but closed at night to ensure the wildlife is protected, and the guided tours to see the penguins fund all of our regenerative work within the reserve.

Tour guide Lyndon Perriman shows visitors around the reserve. Photo / Jodie Gibson

It's the thousands of plants in the ground and the ongoing work to protect the area that has led to this reserve having the largest population of little penguins on the Otago Peninsula. We are also seeing an increase in numbers of seals, sea lions and other seabirds.

For more, see bluepenguins.co.nz