Birdling's Flat, originally named Poranui, is a settlement in Canterbury, New Zealand, close to the shore of Lake Ellesmere / Te Waihora.
Birdling's Flat also commonly refers to the nearby pebble beach that is part of Kaitorete Spit

Kaitorete Spit

Kaitorete Spit is a long finger of land which extends along the coast of Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. it runs southwest from Banks Peninsula for 25 kilometres, and separates the shallow Lake Ellesmere from the Pacific Ocean...

. The beach is well known as a place to find small Agate

Agate

Agate is a microcrystalline variety of silica, chiefly chalcedony, characterised by its fineness of grain and brightness of color. Although agates may be found in various kinds of rock, they are classically associated with volcanic rocks and can be common in certain metamorphic rocks.-Etymology...

s and a variety of other attractive rounded pebbles.

Birdling's Flat is named for the Birdling family, who were the first European Settlers to farm the area. William Birdling, the first member of the Birdling family to arrive in New Zealand built a house, Waikoko, in the area which was later to bear his name.

On 16 May 1882, a branch line

Branch line

A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line...

 railway was opened to Birdling's Flat from a junction with the Southbridge Branch in Lincoln

Lincoln, New Zealand

Lincoln is a town in the Selwyn District of Canterbury, New Zealand. The town has a population of 2,727.-Location:It is located on the Canterbury Plains to the west of Banks Peninsula, 22 kilometres south of Christchurch.-History:...

. This line became known as the Little River Branch, with the extension to Little River

Little River, New Zealand

Little River is a town in New Zealand on Banks Peninsula in the Canterbury district.-Location:Little River is approximately 30 minutes drive from Akaroa on Banks Peninsula, a major South Island tourist destination, and 45 minutes drive from Christchurch. It is on State Highway 75, which links...

 opened on 11 March 1886. The railway served Birdling's Flat until its closure on 30 June 1962. The railway's old formation

Track bed

A track bed or trackbed is the term used to describe the groundwork onto which a railway track is laid. Trackbeds of disused railways are sometimes used for recreational paths or new light rail links....

 remained well preserved and has now been revitalised into a public walking and cycling track, the Little River Rail Trail

Little River Rail Trail

The Little River Rail Trail is a cycling and walking track on Banks Peninsula in the Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island.-Location:...

.

It has been used as a launch site for sounding rocket

Sounding rocket

A sounding rocket, sometimes called a research rocket, is an instrument-carrying rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its sub-orbital flight. The origin of the term comes from nautical vocabulary, where to sound is to throw a weighted line from a ship into...

s. The University of Canterbury

University of Canterbury

The University of Canterbury , New Zealand's second-oldest university, operates its main campus in the suburb of Ilam in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand...

has a meteorological research station based there.

External links

• Encyclopedia Astronautica - Birdling's Flat
• University of Canterbury - Birdling's Flat radars