Megadyptes antipodes breeds in New Zealand on the South Island's south-east coast (470 pairs), Foveaux Strait and Stewart Islands (220-400 pairs in 1994, dropping to 178 pairs in 1999-2001¹⁵), Auckland Islands (520-570 pairs) and Campbell Islands (405 pairs)¹⁶. Two severe mortality events in 1986 and 1990 each halved the number of South Island pairs and in 2004 50% of chicks in South Island were killed by diptheritic stomatisis¹⁶. However, numbers have recovered to 1980 levels¹⁶. The Catlins population (south-east coast of South Island) may have declined by 75% since the 1940s^2,9. Numbers of individuals on Campbell Island declined between 1987 and 1998¹⁰. Adults are sedentary, but juveniles disperse north as far as the Cook Strait³. It was previously thought to have a historic range reaching the northern end of the South Island, however a recent paper revealed this to be a distinct species¹⁹.