For travellers across the tops, the kea is the best-loved and most obvious bird, known for its brilliant under-wing plumage, its insatiable curiosity and its typically parrot-like cunning. The kea is the world s only alpine parrot.

Stoats and other predators have been at work from the tops down to the valley floors, and the forests in particular no longer abound with birdlife. However, bellbirds are still widespread, sometimes singing right at the treeline, while kaka may be heard occasionally. Look for the elusive blue duck in rapidly-flowing mountain streams; robins or tomtits will approach fearlessly when you stop for a rest and fantails are never very far away.