Flea Bay (Banks Peninsula)

[Kyle]The tiny Flea Bay has lots of cool sea caves and a couple of interesting beaches, as well as a pretty healthy population of fur seals and one of the world’s few colonies of White-Flippered Penguins. These are a sub-species of the more common Little Blue Penguins. There are currently about 3,700 breeding pairs left in the world and they are classified as Threatened. They are the only species of penguin in the world to be known to be nocturnal (so we were lucky to spot some during our arrival).

The farm and wildlife in Flea Bay

We had hoped to get out in the kayak and have a paddle around, but heavy rains in the morning kept us thinking it would be better to have a nice, cozy day inside. We did spend some time on deck in the afternoon, after the rains stopped, scanning the area with our binoculars. We were glad to find a few fur seals and really lucky to find a few White-Flippers hanging out on the rocks before dark. The farmer who has the land surrounding the bay even went to the trouble to build them a few nest boxes, which he has protected with a predator-proof fence. I like that they know it’s not all about the sheep.