Petroica australis
Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~20% in a week ~40%
The South Island robin (Petroica australis; also known in Māori as the kakaruai) is a sparrow-sized bird found only in New Zealand, where it has the status of a protected endemic species. The birds are sparsely distributed through the South Island and Stewart Island / Rakiura, although the distribution is not continuous. The nominate, and the Stewart Island robin (P. australis rakiura) are the two subspecies. The species is closely related to the North Island robin (formerly P. australis longipes, now considered a distinct species), and also to the extremely rare black robin (P. traversi) of the Chatham Islands.
The South Island robin has two subspecies: P. australis australis, the nominate form, and P. australis rakiura, the Stewart Island robin. These subspecies do not overlap in their distributions. The North Island robin (P. longipes), the tomtit (Petroica macrocephala), and the black robin (Petroica traversi) in the Chatham Islands are closely related species. P. traversi seems to be a Chatham Island derivative of P. australis, although the position of the most recent common ancestor has yet to be determined. The family Petroicidae of Australasian robins has a total... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arthur's Pass National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 2 | Rakiura National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 3 | Fiordland National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 4 | Abel Tasman National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand | |
| 5 | Egmont National Park | 🇳🇿 New Zealand |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a South Island Robin sighting in Egmont National Park on a given day, based on 43 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 35th most-seen of the 46 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 20%, and over a week to about 40%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a South Island Robin in Egmont National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January–February and July–August, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most South Island Robin sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 5
Of the 5 parks where we can rate South Island Robin sightings, Egmont National Park ranks 5th at about 10%. The best odds are in Arthur's Pass National Park (New Zealand, about 70%), Rakiura National Park (New Zealand, about 50%) and Fiordland National Park (New Zealand, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the South Island Robin is recorded against all the birds logged in Egmont National Park (43 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.
