Where to find 10 weird and wacky New Zealand animals in the wild
Last updated on January 14th, 2026 at 10:55 am
New Zealand wildlife doesn’t really include mammals – in fact the only native mammal is the bat! You could say that compared to Australia its a bit lacking, but then again, it also doesn’t do poisonous snakes and spiders and crocodiles and jellyfish and all those other things that kill you. (It does do great white sharks too though sorry!)
But…….New Zealand does do weird and wonderful quite well – especially with its flightless birds and dinosaur age tuataras. So lets find out where to find these amazing New Zealand animals in the wild.
Some of these NZ animals can be difficult to find in the wild, but read this post and then you know exactly where to find them.
First a few important links to use when you plan your trip. They are affiliate links, but I use them all for my travels, and if you do too it will help me keep producing this content – and at no extra cost to you. Cheers!
Plan for your trip
Flights – use skyscanner to find and book your flight – I often find the same flight for a lot cheaper than booking direct with the airline!
Insurance – Use EKTA or SafetyWing. TBH I usually use EKTA – any nationality, any age and its ok if you are already traveling – which is perfect for me!
Accommodation – use booking.com or Tripadvisor, or for a hostel – Hostelworld. I use all three.
Internet – buy a yesim eSim or Airalo before you go. I use both depending on where I am going.
Buses, trains, ferries – 12Go is always my first option for buses, ferries and trains
Car rental – use DiscoverCars – they are my ‘go-to’ car rental site
Tours and Activities – book with Viator, GetYourGuide, or Eatwith. Some top tours for wildlife spotting are:
1. Kiwi Spotting & Stargazing Tour from Auckland
2. Glow-worms on the Guided Eco-Cave Tour or Ruakuri Cave Guided Tour at Waitomo
3. Clearwater Wildlife Tours near Dunedin
4. Sail, Seals, and Walk day tour in Abel Tasman National Park
5. Watch the little blue penguins arrive home from their day fishing in Oamaru.
Hiking – I use AllTrails for online and offline hiking trails – it means you know exactly where you are on the trail and makes getting lost a lot harder!!
Thanks so much if you use one of these links – it costs you nothing but helps me keep writing!!
So, which animals are we looking for?
Okay – what animals are we looking for and where do we find them? Let’s go…
Kiwi – cool flightless birds found only in NZ.
Glow-worms – cool for being so pretty, and they are not worms at all – read on!
Fur Seals – while away hours watching these big and lumbering on land, but amazing acrobats in the water.
Tuatara – cool for being the only living dinosaur aged reptile found only in NZ – it has existed for more than 200 million years.
Eels – slippery cool, and some think ugly but they can be quite friendly and beautiful!
Giant Weta – cool for also being around when the dinosaurs were – and these beautiful (to me) insects can be huge.
Kea – cool for being huge and cheeky mountain parrots – sometimes they are too clever. I’ve seen one pull the window out of a campervan!
Penguins – well, they are just cool!
Albatross – cool because they are sooooooo big – with a wingspan of up to 3.5 meters / 11 feet.
Sea Lion – cool as they are the rarest sea lions in the world and only found in NZ.
1. Where to find NZ Kiwi in the wild
Go kiwi – spotting in these four good places:
- Stewart Island – anywhere! If you want to learn about the kiwi and feel more sure you will see them, this a great option for a guided Kiwi spotting session on Stewart Island.
Stewart Island is south of the South Island. Fly there from Invercargill, or take a ferry from Bluff (with sea-sick pills at the ready)! - The whole of Kapiti Island (offshore from Paraparaumu north of Wellington) is a nature reserve under the care of the Department of Conservation. There is accommodation available on the island for overnight stays and you can book an overnight kiwi spotting tour to get the best chance at seeing one of the kiwis.
- Tiritirimatangi Island reserve near Auckland. You can stay the night here (you need to book well ahead), but you can also do a day tour where you will see various other native birds – however you would have to be very lucky to see kiwi during the day.
- Tawharanui Regional Park north of Auckland. Again you can stay the night here. In summer you must but you can go on this Kiwi Spotting & Stargazing Tour which has an optional stay.
Camp out or walk at night in any of these places and you should get lucky. Of course, you do have to go out at dusk or night to see them as they are nocturnal (although occasionally you will see them in daylight hours but that’s only happened once for me).
For more information and locations read The 7 best places to see kiwis in the wild in New Zealand
2. Where to find NZ Tuatara in the wild
Look for these dinosaur aged tuataras on Somes Island in the Wellington Harbour in the summer – they may be out basking.
If not, then try Zelandia in Wellington. Its a fully fenced ecosanctuary, but its basically natural and the tuataras here are wild.
Otherwise tuatara are only found on predator free offshore islands which you cannot visit. Fun fact: Tuatara are the only living members left of the Rhynchocophalian order as all others became extinct around 65 millions years ago.
There are places you can see tuatara in captivity across the country e.g. the Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre in the Wairarapa, or in Queens Park in Invercargill.
3. Where to find NZ Glow-worms in the wild
Glow-worms aren’t worms at all! They are actually the larvae of carnivorous fungus gnats (which look a bit like mosquitoes and eat other smaller insects).
Famous places to see them are at the Waitomo caves (North Island) and in the Te Anua caves (South Island), both involving a gentle boat ride in the caves with the glow-worm lights all around.
You must go on a tour in both these places . In Waitomo try the Guided Eco-Cave Tour or Ruakuri Cave 1.5-Hour Guided Tour. In Te Anau book this Glowworm Caves Guided Tour
You can also visit the (free) Glowworm Dell which has a signpost showing you where to go just on the side of the road going north out of Hokitika. (You wont miss it.)
One of my other favourite places is in the Waipu Caves in Northland. It’s not as spectacular as the Waitomo or Te Anau caves maybe, but its free and its quiet. I’ve been the only one there both times I visited. Don’t forget to take a torch!
This is definitely a question to ask locals as glow worms can be found all over the country. You can also find out more in this post – Exactly where to see glow-worms in New Zealand!
4. Where to find NZ Fur Seals in the wild
Great places to start with to see fur seals are:
- Cape Palliser in the Wairarapa
- Tauranga Bay near Cape Foulwind on the West Coast of the South Island
- And of course the Ohau roadside stop near Kaikoura as well as around Kaikoura itself!
- You will also see them on tours around the Dunedin area – especially this very highly ranked Clearwater Wildlife Tours (with a max of 10 guests). Or drive to see them at Sandfly Bay or Allans Beach – read more below in 10. NZ Sea Lions.
- You are also likely to see them on the Abel Tasman track – especially if you are kayaking, as well as on Farewell Spit or Wharariki Beach in Golden Bay. You can try this Sail, Seals, and Walk day tour in Abel Tasman where the captain will take you to places you should see the seals.
5. Where to find NZ Eels in the wild
New Zealand eels – Find eels in slower flowing rivers from September to May across the country.
An easy spot, where the eels have been fed a while (so semi-wild) is at the Jester-house Cafe near Nelson.
Hokitika is another great spot – take the gravel road toward the sea just after the Hokitika Holiday Park sign (if you’re coming from the south) on the main road. Follow the “eel” signs. Take some cheap supermarket mince to feed them!
Camp at Tōtaranui Beach in Golden Bay to find them in the stream in the campground area.
Or swim in the river by the Kaiaraara hut on Great Barrier Island where the friendly ones will join you.
Do ask locals as there are places all over the country with eels and these are just a few.
6. Where to find NZ Giant Weta in the wild
It will be hard to see the giant weta in the wild unless you are dedicated although they have recently been reintroduced on Urupukapuka Island in the Bay of Islands, and on Somes Island in Wellington. Camp in either place and take a night walk to try your luck!
No luck? Don’t worry - you may well find the smaller cave, tree or ground wetas on your trip. Keep your eyes open in caves and the bush. Look for “weta hotels” if you are walking in forest parks or reserves – sometimes there will be a resident.
You can also stay on farms, near the bush, or go hiking and leave your boots outside overnight. Check before you put the boots on in the morning to see if you have ‘caught’ a weta!
The weta in the photo is one we came across in a cave in Able Tasman National Park. For fun, read this article about the largest insect in the world – particularly the one that likes eating carrots!
7. Where to find NZ Kea in the wild
The cheeky Kea! Keep your eyes open around mountain areas of the South Island.
Arthurs Pass and the glaciers are good places to see these cheeky birds. Watch any rubber on your cars – they can be very destructive! When hiking in the South Island mountains keep an eye out for them overhead – they have a distinctive orange underwing colour.
8. Where to find NZ Penguins in the wild
Read my dedicated post about where to find penguins in New Zealand for more details, but in brief these are good places to see them for free:
- Curio Bay in the Catlins
- Sandfly bay or Allans beach on the Otago Peninsula
- Stewart Island
There are also organized viewing places in
1. Oamaru – you can watch the little blue penguins arrive home from their day fishing each evening!
2. Banks Peninsula near Akaroa – nightly 3 hour tours
3. The Otago Peninsula – a half day Otago Peninsula Scenery & Little Blue Penguin Tour
There is more info about the penguins, tours and locations in my penguin post.
9. Where to find NZ Albatross in the wild
Head to Taiaroa Head on the Otago Peninsula to see Albatross in full flight. They fly near the carpark out on the cliff. To get closer to the nesting area where you might see chicks, adults or both, take a tour at the Visitor Center. October is the month you are least likely to see any albatross here and you are extremely unlikely to see them anywhere else in NZ.
You can see the Albatross on this City, Otago Peninsula & Albatross Guided Tour or this similar tour as well.
10. Where to find NZ Sea Lion in the wild
The best free place to see sea lions is at Allans Beach on the Otago Peninsula. Walk for five minutes along a track to the beach where you can watch them for as long as you like. Keep your distance! Note – Go at dusk and you might also see yellow-eyed penguins coming back from a hard days work at sea.
Stop at the viewing area by Hoopers Inlet – just before the beach as another good spot to see seals and the sea lions but do stay behind the fence to protect them. Also drive slowly – cars have hit pups and killed them – not good, right?
Finally, take a slightly tougher walk to Sandfly Bay – again the sea lions and yellow-eyed penguins are found here.
Consider this very highly ranked Clearwater Wildlife Tours (with a max of 10 guests) to see the wildlife on the Otago Peninsula.
Now you are ready to go – let me know in the comments if this has helped you find New Zealand animals in the wild!
Enjoy 🙂
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