A peek into ancient New Zealand

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Before humans arrived in New Zealand, there were no land mammals (other than the bat). This meant no foxes, dogs, cats, rats, stoats, weasels, possums or in fact any predators, which made the country a paradise for birds. It was so safe here, that some of them (like the kiwi) lost the ability to fly.

Then man came (from nearby Polynesian islands) bringing with them a host of bird-munching pets, which found their way into the wild. Enjoying the easy pickings of flightless birds, these predators exploded in population, and wiped out 50%!o(MISSING)f native bird species within a few years.

Stewart Island is located south of the South Island, and is sometimes thought of as New Zealand's third island. It is more than 90%!N(MISSING)ational Park, and it only has one town, Oban. Here they are trying to recreate the New Zealand of old, by exterminating all predators, including deer as they like to feast on some of the rarest plants in the world. It's funny how buying possum fur is actually encouraged here, as they are such a pest, and seem to be the favourite victim of roadkill.

There is one perfect sanctuary for birds. Ulva island is 5 minutes from Stewart Island by water taxi, and is completely free of predators. In fact we had to check our backpack to ensure we'd not accidentally brought in a rodent hitch-hiker!

So we hopped onto the ferry to take a look for ourselves. It's a beautiful, tranquil place, and we took a walk through the forest to explore. Our first encounter was with a weka, who, without any predators, is taking advantage as top dog of the island. He can't fly but he's top of the chain, eating worms, plants, and even other birds and their eggs!

In fact we saw loads of cool birds (but sadly no kiwis - they're pretty rare!), and even saw two bats hanging from a branch that looked like dead leaves! After taking several photos of the pair, we realised they were dead leaves.....

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