Watch from bird hides as thousands of shorebirds swirl in flocks over the beautiful coast and visit the centre to learn more about their fascinating world. Only an hour from Auckland and at the doorstep of the Coromandel Peninsula, Pūkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre is a hidden gem for birders, locals, and international guests.

The Pūkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre was opened in 1990 by the Pūkorokoro Miranda Naturalists’ Trust and registered as a QEII covenant in 1993. Originally a paddock in the early 1980s, the covenant area around the Centre has been planted and a pond established.

The best birdwatching is two hours either side of high tide. Species you might see include kuaka/bar-tailed godwit, huahou/red knot, ruddy turnstone and kuriri/Pacific golden plover, as well as poaka/pied stilts, tōrea/South Island pied oystercatcher and ngutu parore/wrybill.

The best place to view the birds is from the bird hides. These are located 2 km south of the Shorebird Centre on the Robert Findlay Wildlife Reserve, which is also registered as a QEII covenant. From the Shorebird Centre you can walk the 2 km (30 mins each way) or you can park at the Findlay reserve carpark and walk 200 m (5 mins).

Accommodation is available for those wanting a longer visit. You can stay at the Shorebird Centre comfortably and inexpensively, either in a self-contained unit or a bunk dormitory. In doing so, you help support the Pūkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre. The centre’s bookshop holds the most extensive selection of natural history book titles in New Zealand.

The Shorebird Centre also offers guided tours of the area, exploring the reserve and the history, ecology, and the amazing shorebirds it supports.