Story: Native plants and animals – overview

Silvereye

Silvereye

The silvereye (Zosterops lateralis) is a recent arrival. As it got to New Zealand under its own steam, it is considered to be a native species. It was first noted in 1832 in Milford Sound. Stragglers must have been blown across from Australia and by the end of the 1850s they had spread widely. Today it is one of the most common native birds and has even colonised the cooler climes of the subantarctic Auckland and Campbell islands.

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Otago Daily Times
Reference: 16 July 2005
Photograph by Stephen Jaquiery

Permission of the Otago Daily Times must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Bob Brockie, 'Native plants and animals – overview - Species unique to New Zealand', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/10596/silvereye (accessed 24 April 2024)

Story by Bob Brockie, published 24 Sep 2007