Kapiti Bird Tours

Kapiti Bird Tours is the small one-man birding operation of Michael "Mik" Peryer, known locally as the Birdman of Waikanae. Based on the Kapiti Coast of New Zealand's North Island, Peryer has been running guided walks around the Waikanae Estuary Scientific Reserve for close to two decades. Now retired, he offers personalised tours that get visiting birders up close to the wild resident and migrant birds of the estuary, drawing on a lifetime's familiarity with the site. Tours are typically conducted in English at the pace of the participants and can be combined with visits to nearby Kapiti Island and the Escarpment Track. Alongside guiding, Peryer is the author of a series of locally inspired children's books, several of which are available in both English and Te Reo Maori, which he uses as a way to introduce younger visitors to the estuary's wildlife.