Southland

British actor, author and comedian Stephen Fry has been on the receiving end of some unusually close encounters during a BBC filming expedition in New Zealand.

Recreating Bluff’s famous paua shell house as an exhibit at Canterbury Museum in Christchurch has proved a resounding success with visitors giving 100 percent positive feedback.

A male kakapo, one of a handful of New Zealand’s remaining native parrots, has been found on an island off the south of the South Island after 21 years on the missing list.

It’s not exactly a population explosion, but two newly hatched kakapo chicks on a remote New Zealand island are another small step in the recovery programme for one of the world’s most endangered birds.

Times might be tough on the economic front but Bluff oyster lovers showed no restraint when the official season opened in New Zealand this weekend.

New Zealand’s conservation campaign to save the kakapo – the world’s rarest parrot – has reached a new milestone with confirmation that the population of threatened birds has cracked through the 100 mark.

The match schedule for the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand has been announced in Auckland today (12.03.09) with 13 venues across the country chosen to host pool matches.

The population of the world’s rarest parrot – the New Zealand kakapo – has reached a record high of 125 with the 2009 breeding season being hailed the most successful since the recovery programme began.

Usually it’s the early bird that catches the worm, but New Zealand is offering an early chance to catch the bird - with an invitation for visitors to travel to a remote destination for a rare meeting.

Whale watching and the study of New Zealand’s diverse marine life is a major tourist attraction and a national pastime, but come winter the recreational activity takes on a more serious note.