Fauna of Mana Island

Mana Island boasts a diverse range of animals – insects, reptiles, and native sea and land-based birds. Below are a few (certainly not all) notable examples from each category.

Insects

• • Cook Strait Giant Weta
  • Flax Weevil: See the research report – “Beauveria pseudobassiana and the flax weevil from Mana Island”, by Travis Glare and Jenny Brookes, Bio-Protection Research Centre, Lincoln University, November 2017. See a summary story about this in the December 2017 newsletter (page 6).
  • Speargrass Weevil: See the research report – “Speargrass weevil (Lyperobius huttoni) status on Mana Island February 2021“, by Colin Miskelly and Jaz Hamilton from July 2022. 

     

Reptiles

• • Gold Stripe Gecko
  • Green Gecko
  • Duvaucel’s Gecko
  • McGregor’s Skink

Seabirds

• • Pakahā / Fluttering Shearwater
  • Tākapu / Gannets
  • Kuaka / Diving Petrel
  • Kororā / Little Blue Penguins
  • Titi Wainui / Fairy Prion

Land-based Birds

• • Pāteke / Brown Teal
  • Kākāriki / Yellow-crowned Parakeet – Read about DOC’s transfer of kākāriki to Mana Island [PDF]
  • Kiwi Pukupuku / Little Spotted Kiwi
  • Toutouwai / North Island Robin
  • Takahē – Read about DOC’s work with takahē [PDF]