Wild Ways

The South Island robin population at Orokonui Ecosanctuary has exploded, going from 17 just three years ago to about 235 today. Fiona Gordon reports.

It is 4.45am at Orokonui Ecosanctuary and still dark. Cars approaching along Blueskin Rd form a stream of lights. So much traffic at this hour of the morning? Yes, everyone wants to be here for this special event for our volunteers.

Orokonui Ecosanctuary's conservation manager, Elton Smith, recently oversaw the transfer of 50 South Island saddlebacks, a threatened species, from an island in deepest, darkest Fiordland.

Orokonui Ecosanctuary is preparing to receive a spectacular new species, as Neville Peat reports.

Mountain cedars are one of the special assets of Orokonui Ecosanctuary. They tell their own stories, with help from Peter Johnson.

Sirocco is coming back to Orokonui to get you hooked on kakapo conservation, writes Karin Ludwig.

Two large flightless birds, ambassadors for an endangered species, are winning hearts and minds at Orokonui Ecosanctuary, as Neville Peat reports.

Orokonui Stream boasts a treasure trove of mysterious and elusive native freshwater species that have previously evaded the public eye, as Lan Pham reports. Tragically, most of them are disappearing from waterways throughout the country.

A delightful little pond at Orokonui Ecosanctuary is home to a mystery fish. Neville Peat reports.

There are South Island robins in Orokonui Ecosanctuary - scores of them, writes Robert Schadewinkel.

Spiders have had a bad rap, writes Orokonui Ecosanctuary guide Sofie Welvaert.

The tuatara reintroduced a few months ago into a Dunedin forest are posing some interesting questions for researchers from the University of Otago, as Neville Peat reports.

For the first time in a couple of hundred years, New Zealand's unique tuatara are free-roaming in a South Island forest, thanks to a recent translocation of Cook Strait and captive-reared animals to Orokonui Ecosanctuary. Sue Hensley reports.

A sanctuary for wildlife, Orokonui Ecosanctuary is rapidly becoming a haven for our rare native plants too, writes Alyth Grant.

Although kaka, takahe and kiwi are among the headline species living at Orokonui Ecosanctuary, the forested valley also harbours some bush birds that are dainty and intriguing, writes Neville Peat.

Elton Smith previews a new phase for Orokonui Ecosanctuary's rare kiwi.

Fernbirds, without the need for translocation, appear to be increasing in number at Orokonui Ecosanctuary, writes Neville Peat.

Dr Allison Knight and Alyth Grant give us a guided tour of Orokonui Ecosanctuary's lichens.

Two endangered takahe will soon make themselves at home at the Orokonui Ecosanctuary, writes Neville Peat.

Orokonui Ecosanctuary can inspire a new generation, writes Tahu Mackenzie.