Te Anau Wildlife Centre

The Te Anau Wildlife Centre is the ideal setting to learn about some of Fiordland’s wildlife. The centre offers the opportunity to view the rare flightless takahē, now restricted to the tussock grasslands of the Murchison Mountains of Fiordland. Native waterfowl, weka, parakeets, tui, kea, kākā and pigeons are all part of the setting.

It is located on the shores of Lake Te Anau, 10 minutes walk from the Department of Conservation Visitor Centre.

The centre is open from dawn to dusk and can cater for guided tours by booking with the Department of Conservation. School groups are free of charge.

The centre’s main aviary houses a number of native birds. The native pigeon, tūī, kea and kākā or bush parrot can be seen here. Another aviary houses native parakeets. Close by the takahē enclosure is the waterfowl enclosure. Here you can see mallard and Canada geese, both of which are not native birds. Introduced mallards are the most widespread and common duck in New Zealand and, as a consequence, our main game bird. The female mallard is often confused with the female grey duck, which is a native species.