Visit New Zealand's largest known living kauri tree, Tāne Mahuta, on this short, easy walk suitable for buggies and children. It is open 9 am to 5 pm daily. This wheelchair and buggy accessible short ...

DOC is asking locals and visitors naturing in the Bay of Islands/Te Pēwhairangi to be on the lookout for a rare Hector’s or Māui dolphin currently navigating local waters, and to report it if observed ...

Touted as the longest in New Zealand, the new swing bridge being built in Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park has been giving everyone a bit of a headache. Contractors refer to it as “the beast” for its ...

Predator control is planned in Mt Aspiring National Park – October to December 2025. DOC's Tititea/Mt Aspiring National Park Visitor Centre in Wānaka runs an annual ballot system for hunters wishing ...

Learn your first ten forest birds. The birds in this first course are ones that are most frequently recorded in forest bird surveys using the five minute bird count method. Work through each section ...

We're losing what makes us different. 28,000 of New Zealand’s known species are found nowhere else on Earth. Over 4,000 of them are threatened with extinction, or at risk of becoming threatened. Once ...

Located in the northwest corner of New Zealand's South Island, Kahurangi is New Zealand's second largest national park. In places it is an untracked wilderness, elsewhere a wonderful network of tracks ...

After heavy rainfall over Easter weekend, a bridge on the Hooker Valley Track, one of New Zealand’s most popular tourist destinations, has been closed by the Department of Conservation. The second ...

Check gear lists for a range of activities. It’s not possible to dry clothes in huts. Cotton clothing such as jeans, T-shirts and sweatshirts are not suitable. It won’t keep you warm when it's wet.

If you see damage: Report site damage and upload a photo on our online form.

We run programmes to protect and restore our species, places and heritage, and provide opportunities for people to engage with these treasures.

Biosecurity helps prevent damage by animal pests, weeds, didymo, and diseases like kauri dieback. The conservation status of our species is assessed according to their risk of extinction. DOC has ...