Whitfold Bird Garden（珍鸟庄园）

Tour guide for

THE WHITFORD BIRD GARDEN 

One of Auckland’s Hidden Wonders and a New Zealand Qualmark Visitors’ Attraction

Welcome to the Whitford Bird Garden, created over 25 years ago by an Auckland-born New Zealander, Blake Twigden. Blake is a noted conservationist, environmentalist and artist. Having spent many years painting birds, animals, fish and plants overseas, he returned to NZ determined to create a paradise of native and exotic flora and fauna for everyone and particularly future generations, to enjoy. You can see a number of Blake’s beautiful paintings in the office.

New management team is determined to carry on Blake’s original goal and have done a lot to improve the facilities and have introduced new birds, shrubs and trees as well as several Alpacas and miniature horses.

The birds, reptiles and animals you will see today are harmless, but please observe the safety rules, keep to the pathways and listen to any instructions you are given.

We are frequently met at the door by a collection of birds including Peacocks, Silkie and ordinary Bantams and the beautiful Lady Amherst Pheasant. Along with the Carolina Wood Ducks and Mallard Ducks which you will see on our walk, they all feel quite safe in this area as they have plenty of food and shelter and it is  rodent free.

In the ‘open aviary’ area, on either side of the pathway, you will see a number of exotic and native trees, including NZ’s most famous trees – the Kauri, much valued by the early settlers for its size and strength to build ships and houses, and also, the Totara.

It is illegal to keep NZ native birds in an enclosed area except for the NZ Parakeet, the Kakariki. However, with the planting of a number of native trees and clearing some areas, we are lucky to have visitors here such as the Native Wood Pigeon (Kereru) the NZ Fantail (Piwhakawhaka) and the beautiful singing Tui, which is attracted to the nectar found in the yellow flowers of the native Kowhai tree.

The colours and character of the Lorikeest are quite amazing. They are Australian, can be taught to talk and have cheeky personalities. Unlike most birds, they do not eat seed but enjoy fruit and a special wet or dry mixture which provides honey-nectar for them.

You will see a wide range of succulents and exotic plants, intermixed with native flaxes and ferns and trees beside the walkway.

Red-eared Turtles, originally from China live in the pool. They are predominantly meat eaters, hibernate over the colder winter months but love to sunbathe on the bank when temperatures warm up.

The Monarch Butterfly can often be seen flying

overhead or  in the outer area where we have developed a Butterfly Garden to attract the Monarch and the colourful NZ Yellow and Red Admirals as well as our native NZ Blues and Coppers. If you look carefully, you may also see our large Lizards, which are very similar in size and temperament to the native Tuatara.

In the walk-through aviary, you will see a variety of birds including Cockatiels, Turquoisine Parakeets and Rosa Bourkes , white, fawn, pied and grey Zebra Finches, the stunningly coloured Gouldian Finch all from Australia, the Greenfinch introduced 200 years ago from Britain, and tiny Finches like the Cordon Bleu from Africa, the Jacarini from South America and the Red Headed Parrot Finch from New Caledonia. There are fawn and chocolate Bengalese or Society Finches, ideal in any aviary as they will virtually adopt anything! There are also yellow, orange, green, white and variegated Canaries as well as the German Roller Canary. Canaries were originally taken down the mines to warn of gas and have recently been introduced to some parts of South Africa to do that job!

You will see the richly coloured Golden or Chinese Pheasant from China, the Swinhoe Pheasant from Taiwan and the Lady Amherst

Pheasant from China & Burma. Like most

males in the birdworld, they are brightly coloured, while the female is quite dull. Their collar hoods or ‘ruffs’ will come up to protect their eyes and face in really bad weather or when they are fighting.

Once you have done this part of the tour, you can relax in our sheltered  area, watch

a DVD on the Whitford Bird Garden or enjoy a nice hot or cold drink while you admire the views looking far out to the extinct volcano Rangitoto, or east towards the beach and golfing areas of Beachlands and Maraetai.

Charlie & his best friend Queenie are two very likeable (and noisy!) Sulphur Crested Cockatoos from Australia. Yes, they talk, they dance, they can bite (you have been warned!) and they love attention. You will be very amused by their antics and especially Charlie’s frequent requests for “crackers!”  He has quite a vocabulary – most of it polite! They have large powerful beaks and that is why they are enclosed in a metal framed aviary!

Just  near Charlie & Queenie, inside aviaries, you will find some more ‘parrot type’ birds that are best housed separately from the smaller birds in the walk-through aviary. In the first cage are the placid Peach-Fronted Conures from the Amazon area. They face increasing problems due to the cutting down of the forests in the Amazon area. Like the Indian Ringnecks (India) next to them & then the brightly coloured Lovebirds (Africa) they eat seed, fruit, vegetables and ‘weeds’ such as the native puha (rariki or milkweed) and dandelions.

Beyond the aviaries, you will get an all-round view of the 5.5 acre property and the friendly animals that live in the paddocks. Alpacas come from South America, are in the camelid family and are a lot smaller than a llama. They graze in herds on the higher level slopes in the Andes as well as Chile and Bolivia. Shorn here once a year, their ‘hair or wool fibre’ is used for a wide range of clothing. They are gentle and devoted animals and a baby takes around 11 months to be born.

The miniature horses are friendly and popular with visitors. Like the alpacas, who they get on with, they eat grass and hay, sometimes supplemented with pellets.

In the surrounding fields, you will also see a number of sheep (lambs are born usually  late August through September) as well as rabbits and the native Pukeko or Purple Swamphen.

Feel free to relax in the beautiful quiet and natural environment of Whitford Bird Garden, which has been awarded the NZ Tourism Qualmark Award and is ranked as one of the best Gardens in New Zealand.