KnowKi

Learn the wildlife of national parks

Learn the wildlife of Paparoa National Park

West Coast · New Zealand

1,059 species have research-grade observations inside Paparoa National Park on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, so you know what you're looking at before you go.

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Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. Weka Gallirallus australis146
  2. White-fronted Tern Sterna striata71
  3. South Island Robin Petroica australis40
  4. Variable Oystercatcher Haematopus unicolor25
  5. Tomtit Petroica macrocephala25
  6. New Zealand Fantail Rhipidura fuliginosa23
  7. New Zealand Pigeon Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae21
  8. Spotted Shag Phalacrocorax punctatus18
  9. New Zealand Bellbird Anthornis melanura18
  10. Tūī Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae15

Plants

  1. Nīkau palm Rhopalostylis sapida223
  2. Kiekie Freycinetia banksii152
  3. Shore Hebe Veronica elliptica109
  4. Climbing rātā Metrosideros perforata94
  5. Kawakawa Piper excelsum77
  6. Selliera Goodenia radicans75
  7. Kidney fern Hymenophyllum nephrophyllum67
  8. New Zealand flax Phormium tenax65
  9. Kanono Coprosma grandifolia60
  10. Rimu Dacrydium cupressinum57

Mammals

  1. Domestic Goat Capra hircus22
  2. Hector's Dolphin Cephalorhynchus hectori4
  3. Common Brushtail Possum Trichosurus vulpecula4
  4. Black Rat Rattus rattus3

Insects

  1. New Zealand Red Admiral Vanessa gonerilla27
  2. Chorus Cicada Amphipsalta zelandica20
  3. Wellington Tree Wētā Hemideina crassidens18
  4. Passionvine hopper Scolypopa australis17
  5. Talitropsis sedilloti12
  6. Carové's Giant Dragonfly Uropetala carovei11
  7. Forest Semilooper Declana floccosa11
  8. Izatha huttonii11
  9. Torpedo Bug Siphanta acuta10
  10. Flax window-maker Orthoclydon praefectata10

Spiders and kin

  1. Algidia viridata12
  2. Algidia interrupta11
  3. Black-headed Jumping Spider Trite planiceps9
  4. Tailed forest spider Arachnura feredayi8
  5. Ischalea spinipes8
  6. Shelob inconstans7
  7. Green Orbweb Spider Colaranea viriditas6
  8. Sorensen's Spider Gradungula sorenseni6
  9. Hendea myersi6
  10. Karamea lobata5

Mollusks

  1. Giant chiton Plaxiphora obtecta4
  2. Little Black Mussel Xenostrobus neozelanicus3
  3. Shield Shell Scutus breviculus2
  4. Radiate Limpet Cellana radians2
  5. Cart-rut Shell Dicathais orbita2

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

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Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. Parks outside the U.S. are from the World Database on Protected Areas (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN, Protected Planet). KnowKi is not affiliated with the National Park Service or any park's managers. Free, with no ads, no account, and no purchases.