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Little Blue Penguin
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Eudyptula minor )
 This is the smallest penguin in the world. They can get just 25 cm tall and weight up to 1 kilogram. We have been visited by this cute animal at Tatapouri during the summer. There was two pairs of penguins laying 2 eggs each pair. Total of 8 penguins during the season. All of the eggs hatched and the chicks went safe to the sea. A project to protect the Blue Penguin is being developed to increase their chances in our waters. Remember that any natural or artificial hole will be used by the penguin. Cats, dogs and rats are the main predators at Tatapouti bay. The Little Blue Penguin has night habits and a very nice activity is to wait them at the beach at the moment the parents are going and coming to the sea to feed the chicks.
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Seals
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These are the most common seals in New Zealand waters. They are very good swimmers and weaned pups will turn up almost anywhere around New Zealand. A fur seal pup tagged on the west coast of South Island has even been recorded in Australia. On land they sometimes become disoriented and have been found in unusual places such as back-yards, drains and streets. Adult males reach about 2m nose to tail length, and may weigh 185 kg. The smaller females reach 1.5m in length and 70 kg in weight. They feed mainly on squid and small mid-water fish but also take larger species such as conger eels, barracuda, jack mackerel and hoki. At the Gable End ( part of our Eco Tour ) we can get really close to those animals, an unforgetable experience!!! |
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Mako Sharks
(Isurus oxyrinchus)
Mako sharks are "mackerel sharks" in the Family Lamnidae. They are a deep blue on their back and sides and white underneath. Makos are also the fastest kind of shark, swimming as fast as 30 mph (48 kph). They may use this speed to catch their fast-swimming prey. Mako sharks are considered dangerous and have been known to attack swimmers and boats.
At birth, pups are about 28 inches long. Makos are ovoviviparous . That means (very simply described) the female produces eggs, but they remain inside the female. (The shell is just a thin membrane, which is shed.) The pup is nourished by the yolk. Now, here's the cool part. As the pups mature inside the female, they get extra nourishment by eating the other eggs or pups inside. Yes, really. It is called, "intrauterine cannibalism." In our cage we can take you close to the sharks with safety and comfort. |
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Dolphins
(Common dolphin )
Dolphins have a special place in mythologies from many parts of the world as protectors and friends of humans.Several individual dolphins have become part of New Zealand's folklore over the past 100 years. From 1888-1912 Pelorus Jack (a Risso's dolphin) guided ships from Wellington to Nelson. For two summers, a bottlenose dolphin nicknamed Opo (after the Northland settlement of Opononi) played with children, allowing them to touch her and ride on her back. The latest high profile relationship of dolphin and human was Maui (another bottlenose), who from 1992-94 played with divers and boaties around Kaikoura and then the Marlborough Sounds. At Tatapouri you will have this great opporttunity, let us take you there.
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Stingray
(Dasyatis brevicaudatus)
Stingrays are beautiful and graceful swimmers, gliding like flying carpets of the ocean floor! These flattened-out fish are related to sharks and have a distinctive, sleek tail with sharp spines on it. Each spine has little barbs along the edges like thorns, which sting like a scorpion's tail, to defend the stingray from predators. Their sandy-brown color is great camouflage while they dig into the mud for crabs, shrimp, clams, fish, and worms to eat. Stingray mouths are conveniently located on their bellies, so when they find something, in it goes! If a stingray eats a clam, it eats it whole, crushes it up, and then spits the shell out! Feed the Stingrays with Dive Tatapouri!!! |
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