Tadorna variegata
Silhouette: Rebecca Groom · PhyloPic
In 3 days >90%
The paradise shelduck (Tadorna variegata), also known as the paradise duck, or pūtangitangi in Māori, is a species of shelduck, a group of goose-like ducks, which is endemic to New Zealand. Johann Friedrich Gmelin placed it in the genus Anas with the ducks, geese, and swans. Both the male and female have striking plumages: the male has a black head and barred black body and the female has a white head with a chestnut body. They weigh between 1.09 and 2 kg (2.4 and 4.4 lb) and are between 63 and 71 cm (25 and 28 in) in length.
Paradise shelducks mate for life and usually live as pairs, and moult their feathers from December to February. They are primarily herbivorous, and mostly graze on pasture grasses and clover, but have been observed eating a wide range of invertebrates. They are seasonally hunted as a game bird throughout New Zealand, and today the IUCN Red List classifies them as a species of least concern.
The paradise shelduck was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other ducks, swans, and geese in the genus Anas and coined... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aoraki Mount Cook National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 2 | Fiordland National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 3 | Abel Tasman National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 4 | Egmont National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 5 | Rakiura National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 6 | Arthur's Pass National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Auckland | 🇳🇿 New Zealand |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Busch Gardens Tampa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Moscow Zoo | 🇷🇺 Russia | |
| 3 | Zoo Pilsen | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 4 | Cheyenne Mountain Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Zoo Aquarium de Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Cologne Zoological Garden | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 7 | Staglands Wildlife Reserve | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 8 | Willowbank Wildlife Reserve | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 9 | Paradise Valley Springs | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 10 | Gorge Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Ōtorohanga Kiwi House | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 13 | Te Anau Bird Sanctuary | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 14 | Cologne Zoo Aquarium | 🇩🇪 Germany |
Very likely
About 70% of wildlife watchers report a Paradise Shelduck sighting in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park on a given day, based on 459 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 5th most-seen of the 36 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September
In that month over 90% of wildlife watchers report a Paradise Shelduck in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park on a given day, against about 60% in January and November, the lowest months.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Paradise Shelduck sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Yes
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Paradise Shelduck sightings, Aoraki Mount Cook National Park has the highest daily chance: about 70%. Next come Fiordland National Park (New Zealand, about 60%) and Abel Tasman National Park (New Zealand, about 40%). All parks ranked.
Same family: Anatidae
The closest relatives of the Paradise Shelduck that you can see in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park (family Anatidae, Ducks, Geese, and Swans) are Canada Goose (about 40%) and Mallard (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Paradise Shelduck is recorded against all the birds logged in Aoraki Mount Cook National Park (459 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
