Experienced NZ birders - thoughts about what I saw?

[Jim Smoke]

Back in 1994, I was on a tour of NZ with a friend. Whilst driving in Fiordland, possibly the road to Milford Sound, but I could be wrong about that, we stopped for a call of nature.

I spotted a wren on the ground, in amongst scree, with a prominent eyebrow stripe. I've looked at many photos of riflemen and rock wrens, and time has eroded my memory as to other distinguishing features, so I'm pretty reliant on the approximate locality and the habitat.

Impossible for anybody to say for sure, but which of the two does it feel more probable that it was? I can try to provide more details, if these can be of help.

[Neil Fitzgerald]

Hi Jim. Welcome to the site.
On the ground + scree + eyebrow stripe + road to Milford = rock wren. That's what I'd put my money on.
Neil

[Jim Smoke]

Thanks Neil - that was my feeling, too, but having read that rock wrens can be difficult to find, I was wondering if it was an unlikely stroke of luck? From memory, this was pretty close to the road, but particularly back then (the month was June), that road wasn't carrying much traffic volume, so wouldn't have been much of a disturbance, I'm thinking...

[AlanShaw]

Yes Jim, that sounds like Rock Wren, probably in the same area near the Homer Tunnel where this bird was videoed by me in 2005:--
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5ggwlfOCGk

[Jim Smoke]

Thanks Alan - that looks extremely similar habitat to what I remember. Would it be unusual to see a rifleman in that kind of environment?

[AlanShaw]

Yes, Jim, it would be extremely unusual. Rifleman frequent forests and that habitat there is at high altitude, above the tree line.