Where to See Kea in Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park

Sighting map

Kea sightings in Aoraki / Mount Cook

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Where Kea has been reported, from 139 sightings. Not a live tracker: animals move, and an empty area doesn’t mean there are none.

Keep this map with you offline in the Parkwolf app

Timing

When to look

12 AM1% of the busiest hour1 AM1% of the busiest hour2 AM1% of the busiest hour3 AM2% of the busiest hour4 AM6% of the busiest hour5 AM22% of the busiest hour6 AM61% of the busiest hour7 AM83% of the busiest hour8 AM94% of the busiest hour9 AMBusiest hour10 AM94% of the busiest hour11 AM83% of the busiest hourNoon78% of the busiest hour1 PM78% of the busiest hour2 PM83% of the busiest hour3 PM94% of the busiest hour4 PMBusiest hour5 PM94% of the busiest hour6 PM78% of the busiest hour7 PM56% of the busiest hour8 PM22% of the busiest hour9 PM6% of the busiest hour10 PM2% of the busiest hour11 PM1% of the busiest hour

Kea is most seen 8–11 AM and 3–6 PM. Bars compare each hour with the busiest one.

Kea sightings by hour, as a share of the busiest hour
Hour	Share of busiest hour
12 AM	1%
1 AM	1%
2 AM	1%
3 AM	2%
4 AM	6%
5 AM	22%
6 AM	61%
7 AM	83%
8 AM	94%
9 AM	100%
10 AM	94%
11 AM	83%
Noon	78%
1 PM	78%
2 PM	83%
3 PM	94%
4 PM	100%
5 PM	94%
6 PM	78%
7 PM	56%
8 PM	22%
9 PM	6%
10 PM	2%
11 PM	1%

Audio tour

Hear about Kea on the drive.

Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays stories like this one as you drive Aoraki / Mount Cook, triggered by GPS and read through your car’s speakers.

Aoraki / Mount Cook Tour Guide

The Kea’s Hidden Colours

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“A kea can look fairly plain until it opens its wings. Under that olive-green plumage is a flash of orange-red, one of the easiest clues to this mountain parrot. Its long, curved bill is another.”

Plays as you drive near Red Tarns Viewpoint in Parkwolf’s Aoraki / Mount Cook Tour Guide.

One more story about Kea in the app

White Horse Hill and Kea Point

4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Where to look

Aoraki / Mount Cook spots that mention Kea

Compare with the sightings

Places and trails whose Parkwolf guides talk about Kea. A good start, never a guarantee.

Places

SightKea PointA short alpine walk to the Mueller Glacier lake lookout.

SightHooker LakeIcebergs float below Aoraki at the end of a classic valley walk.

SightTasman Glacier ViewA big lake-and-glacier panorama after 300 steep steps.

LodgingMueller HutA tough climb to an overnight hut above Mueller Glacier.

SightSealy TarnsA steep stair climb to a high alpine panorama.

CampgroundWhite Horse Hill CampsiteCamp under Mt Sefton, with valley walks right nearby.

Trails

EasyKea Point Track3.1 km · 1.3 hrA short climb to a deck above Mueller Lake and the moraine.

ModerateHooker Valley Track10 km · 3.5 hrThree swing bridges lead to a glacier lake beneath Aoraki.

ChallengingSealy Tarns Track5.3 km · 3.5 hrA steep stair climb to small tarns and a wide alpine panorama

Wolf sightings in Yellowstone on Parkwolf’s Find Wildlife map, brightest around Lamar Valley — Wolf sightings in Yellowstone, in the app

Find Wildlife in Parkwolf

Every sighting map, in your pocket.

16 sighting mapsfor Aoraki / Mount Cook, on the same park map as your route
Works offlineout where the animals are and the signal isn’t
24 audio storiesplay as you drive Aoraki / Mount Cook, wildlife included

4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Wildlife

More wildlife in Aoraki / Mount Cook

All 16 sighting maps

74 sightingsRockwrenXenicus gilviventrisMost seen 9 AM–5 PMSighting map

46 sightingsNew Zealand FalconFalco novaeseelandiaeMost seen 9 AM–1 PM & 4–6 PMSighting map

15 sightingsKererūHemiphaga novaeseelandiaeMost seen 8–11 AM & 4–6 PMSighting map

16 sightingsBellbirdAnthornis melanuraMost seen 7–9 AM & 5–7 PMSighting map

33 sightingsBlack-fronted TernChlidonias albostriatusMost seen 7 AM & 4–7 PMSighting map

11 sightingsJewelled GeckoNaultinus gemmeusMost seen 10 AM–4 PMSighting map

19 sightingsSouthern Alps GeckoWoodworthia southern alpsMost seen 7–10 PMSighting map

255 sightingsParadise ShelduckTadorna variegataMost seen 7–9 AM & 5–8 PMSighting map

Where to see Kea in Aoraki / Mount Cook