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The Hibiscus Coast is full of places to experience nature, and walking in these areas is good for fitness, health and sense of wellbeing. In recent years the Coast has seen significant development and loss of many native trees and wild places. However, conservation efforts continue, and with the community increasing their awareness of the importance of protecting and enhancing what we have left through tree planting and pest control, there are still some hidden gems waiting to be found. We asked Jenny Hanwell of Hibiscus Coast Forest & Bird to share some of her favourite local wildlife spots.
Army Bay esplanade reserves – unless you are local, chances are that after a visit to the Open Sanctuary at Shakespear Regional Park, you travel straight through Army Bay and head home. However there are two short walks here well worth staying a while for.
• Pacific Parade Reserve is a clifftop walkway that runs behind the properties along this street. Start at the small car park at Fisherman’s Cove. This is an excellent spot for rock pool exploration, and slimy sea hares, (a type of sea slug) can be found, which look like something from another planet! Head up the concrete ramp on your right to find the start of the grassy walkway, and follow the fenceline all the way.
There are lots of pohutukawa clinging to the clifftop, and part way along the route you will see a colony of pied shags which nest here. Pied shags/karuhiruhi can lay eggs all year round, with peaks in summer and early spring – their populations are vulnerable but recovering. However loss of mature nesting trees can be an issue, alongside deaths from fishing lines and discarded hooks.
Continue the walk, soaking in the views and keeping your eyes peeled for dolphins, all the way to the opposite end of Pacific Parade where there is a set of steps at the bottom corner of the reserve. These take you to the western end of Army Bay. You can either retrace your steps along the reserve, or climb down the steps to the beach. At low tide you can head back along the rocky shore to Fisherman’s Cove – just don’t walk under the shag nests!
• Okoromai-Clansman Reserve – Island View Another easy to follow clifftop walk begins at the end of Shakespear Road next to the walkway down to Okoromai Bay. The walkway taking you to this reserve can be found between numbers 91 and 95. Simply follow it all the way to the end of Island View Drive, and either retrace your steps or return via the roads.
This reserve offers some of the very best views over to Shakespear, and those with binoculars may see wading birds like godwits and pied stilts at Okoromai Bay, as well as battalions of black swans.
Like Pacific Parade, this reserve is mainly coastal pohutukawa, providing essential habitat for nectar feeders like tui, and being so close to Shakespear you may also hear a bellbird/korimako. Manuka hums with bees through many sections of the walkway and it’s also a great place to hear the grey warbler/riroriro.
Staying at the far end of the peninsula, it’s also worth taking a walk down Laurie Southwick Parade from Gulf Harbour Marina Village. Follow the waterway along from the roundabout down towards the Hammerhead, and you will be rewarded with spectacular pohutukawa and good range of water birds. Pied, little and little black shags can be seen fishing and standing on fallen branches drying their outstretched wings. Kingfisher and white-faced heron are regulars here – and if you are lucky, the much more rare reef heron is being seen more and more often. When you reach the end, head across to Pier Z at the marina to see the abundant snapper, parore and mullet sheltering in this no-fishing zone.
Next head down towards Arkles Bay. Stop at the Ferry Road stormwater ponds, where the harakeke are full of tui, and the lake full of waterbirds. Then continue down to the end of Wade River Road and the boat club. From here you can follow Fairhaven Walk – a rough dirt track that runs along the Weiti River behind Riverhaven Drive, and home to some of the best native forest on the Coast.
This area is an excellent example of coastal broadleaf forest, an endangered habitat type in this region. You can see huge mature puriri, the biggest kowhai outside Shakespear and an abundance of other less common native trees such as the kohekohe, which produces flower stems right out of the trunk like its tropical relatives. Kohekohe flowers and fruit are a favourite of possums, as are the fresh leaves of puriri, but volunteers have worked with Forest & Bird to control them and help the recovery of these forest treasures.
The diversity of birdlife in this area is thanks to this incredible forest, and this is the furthest down the peninsula from Shakespear that bellbird have been seen. Part way along the walk there is a small platform out into the river – take a moment here to enjoy the views of the forest, the river and over to Stillwater. The walk is a return route, and good footwear and levels of fitness are required, but it’s well worth checking out if you can.
Raroa Reserve is a pocket-sized haven behind the Whangaparāoa Guide Hall on Stanmore Bay Road. Owned by DOC, is has been improved and maintained by volunteers from Hibiscus Coast Forest & Bird for many years. Originally just a patch of grass with a couple of macrocarpa, it’s now a mini sanctuary for native birds, full of tui and fantails/ pīwakawaka, which are known to nest here. Recent reptile surveys show that this site is also a hotspot for the native ornate skink, a nationally declining species severely threatened by introduced pest animals. If you sit quietly close to where there are sunny spots with dead wood, you might be lucky enough to see one, but please don’t disturb these refuges.
Archers Bush is a large area of public land next to where Penlink will be built. The best place to access the walkway from is a track behind 497 Whangaparāoa Road. The site is nearly 25ha but there are very few walkways and you get a real sense of tranquillity here. The main track will take you all the way down to the Weiti River through native and exotic forest with a good range of birdlife. A tomtit/miromiro was recorded here in 2020 for the first time as part of the Hibiscus Coast bird count, but it’s more likely that you will see tui, kereru, silvereye/tauhou, grey warblers and fantails. Forest & Bird hope that one day this will become a community reserve and the forest can be restored through weed control and native planting.
Next we come to a reserve that covers nearly 6ha at Red Beach, a rare treasure in our suburban environment. Karaka Cove Reserve can be accessed from Matheson Road, and many of us drive past it every day without even knowing it is there. The reserve is a fantastic example of regenerating native forest, and showcases a wide diversity of native trees, including kauri. As you follow the gravel track you will see vivid green kawakawa and manuka, and a friendly fantail, is likely to follow you. Listen for grey warblers and shining cuckoo/ pipiwharauroa. Since 2013, thousands of native trees have been planted here by Hibiscus Coast Forest & Bird working with Auckland Council and the community and at the road end of the site you can see previous year’s plantings transforming into rich habitat for birds, reptiles and insects.
Moving off the peninsula now to Ōrewa Estuary and Metro Park in Millwater. Follow the path from the sportsfields carpark at Millwater Parkway past the stormwater ponds where you can see a good selection of water birds, including paradise shelduck and even spotless crake or grey duck if you are very lucky. Continue round behind the sportsfields, and onto the reserve bordering the estuary. Here you will see plenty of kingfishers, and at high tide wading birds from the estuary flock here, including oystercatchers/tōrea. Between September and March you will also see bar-tailed godwits/kuaka – a special migrant with an incredible story. Early in the season they are somewhat worse for wear, having travelled non-stop from their breeding grounds in Alaska.
Eaves Bush by night If you’ve never considered a bushwalk in the dark, this is definitely something to add to your must-do list. Exploring nature is not just for the daytime – a bushwalk by night throws a new perspective on things. Recently the local Forest & Bird’s Kids’ Kiwi Conservation Club ran a couple of night walks in Eaves Bush Reserve in Ōrewa. It’s a good idea to choose a walk with sturdy and well-laid paths for safety reasons, and these opened up a whole new world to the young adventurers taking part. Yes, the tuis and piwakawaka are sleeping, however, under the dark cloak of night, the most amazing insect life ventures out.
Starting at the Old North Road entrance, this section of track will take you alongside Nukumea Stream, through impressive stands of nikau, kauri, totara, kahikatea, silver fern and more, including the chance to see the amazing 800-year-old kauri specimen that’s withstood lightning strike and many a storm. Lit from underneath by torch, the towering tree canopy looks even more impressive, and the glowing underside of the silver fern is a particular stand-out.
Search in the nooks and crannies of the trees and you’ll see many large cave weta. Several species of spider are on display including sheetwebs hanging out in their expansive horizontal webs along the side of the paths, tunnelwebs peeking out from their holes in the tree trunks, and beautiful emerald green orbweb spiders clinging to their webs. The resident Ruru/morepork often makes itself known and along the sides of the track where there are small pools of water, glow worms illuminate the banks. A rewarding walk, especially if you tiptoe, whisper and take your time.
