Godwits return from 12,000km trip to Hawke’s Bay for summer

Who would travel 12,000km to spend their summer in Hawke’s Bay?

Bar-tailed godwits, or kuaka, show the trip is worth it and the birds have recently begun arriving in the region again as part of their non-story annual migratory journey all the way from Alaska.

Lynne Anderson, a member of Birds NZ on the committee of the Ahuriri Estuary Protection Society, said a favourite spot for the godwits to roost was the Westshore Scrape Lakes in the Ahuriri Estuary in Napier.

“At low tide, they spread out to feed. They can be seen feeding in smaller groups either at Pandora Pond or up the main channel of the estuary.”

She said kuaka breed in Alaska and travel to Aotearoa about this time of year until about March. The birds make the epic trip over about eight or nine days and nights to get here for our summer.

“During the time they are here, they double their body weight and also must undergo a complete moult. The young ones make this flight at about 5 months of age, non-stop.”

The public will get to enjoy the spectacle and learn more about their arrival back into our estuaries with a talk and guided walk on October 22.

Anderson said the best thing to do was to keep at a distance while the birds feed and keep dogs well away from the areas where they eat to ensure they are undisturbed.

“When they do arrive they are exhausted and the wings droop. They really need undisturbed feeding. Because the bird’s whole cycle is dependent on an adequate food supply at each stop,” she said.

She said it was difficult to compare kuaka numbers in Hawke’s Bay to previous years

“Last summer, so far as I know, the highest count was about 280 bar-tailed godwits at Ahuriri Estuary. They are still arriving so it is difficult to compare. I counted 90 odd a week or so ago.”

According to the Department of Conservation, the species is considered native and has an estimated population of 330,000 with an “at-risk” conservation status and a declining population.

The DoC website said some 80,000 kuaka arrive in New Zealand and move into harbour and estuary sites across the country.

The godwits can be seen at most estuaries and in Hawke’s Bay and the odd one may be seen at river mouths. There are always some at Pōrangahau estuary, Anderson said.

Attendees of the guided walk later in the month will meet at the Beach Inn, Meeanee Quay, Westshore on Sunday, October 22 at 1pm.

The event will be cancelled if there is wet weather and interested people should RSVP to aeps.hb@gmail.com.