The North Island Kokako is pretty rare and only found in a few dense bush areas where populations have been preserved.  There are several pairs at Boundary Stream reserve near Napier.  (The South Island Kokako is almost certainly extinct).  You need to be in the area first thing in the morning to hear their beautiful haunting call wafting through the forest.

Ulva Island, a short water-taxi ride from Oban on Stewart Island, has some good populations of the rare native endemics.  There aren’t too many other places to see South Island Saddlebacks (Motuara Island in Marlborough Sounds is another good spot).  Some of these birds are heavily banded.

With a reputation for damaging tourist cars, Kea’s are quite common along the Arthur’s Pass road between Christchurch and the west coast.

One of the rarest Shags in the world, with numbers around the 800 mark.  Only seen around Queen Charlotte Sound, and not on the normal Picton Interislander ferry route.

Probably a recent release, but this pair of partridges were truly feral.  There are small feral populations around NZ, but these birds are pretty scarce.

Originally a vagrant to NZ, these cosmopolitan birds have been seen annually in small numbers, and in 2015 a pair definitely bred in the Wairau lagoon area.  Also seen in Travis wetlands in Christchurch and the Foxton river mouth.