Cleopatra eyes

Check out the Cleopatra eyes on this Black-browed Albatross. #Kaikoura #NZ #Birds #seabirds

photo by Heather - the kiwitravelwriter

A fantail – piwakawaka, a cute NZ native bird, visits my apartment

 

 

Cute Australasian Gannet: Cape Kidnappers, Napier

Great place to visit: an 18k walk or by the tractor trip are the best way.

I know it's down here somewhere!

Taken in Bamberg, Germany - but how could you tell!

Paradise Shelduck ... colouful ducks

These duck are the only birds to have increased their numbers (native - New Zealand) since first seen by Captain Cook ... he called them the "painted duck'. (see photos of adults here) One of the amazing things about these territorial creatures is that they often nest ( and roost) in trees .. the ducklings are pushed out when only a day old .. to live on the ground until they too can fly .. I love them!

Bellbird (native NZ bird) arrives in New Zealands capital: welcome!

Female bellbird by Steve Attwood

Just received this news alert from Zealandia and thought it was worth reproducing in it's entirety -Heather Hapeta 

A female bellbird from an offshore island sanctuary has made a surprise journey to mainland sanctuary by the city Zealandia – turning up right under the nose of the Conservation Officer who originally banded her.

One month after Matu Booth helped transfer 60 bellbird from Kapiti Island to Mana Island for their Restoration Plan (a partnership between DOC and Friends of Mana Island (FOMI)) one of the birds he had attached leg bands to made a surprise appearance 25km away in Karori. Booth was doing his rounds last Friday at Zealandia when he noticed the newcomer.

“I immediately noticed the unfamiliar leg band combination - you do get very tuned in to those colours over time. There was a lot of interest from the resident males, they were chasing her and singing to her. I went into a bit of a tizzy and as soon as I got back to the office did a check on our database then emailed DOC and the Friends of Mana Island, who confirmed the bird was from their recent transfer. I helped set up the aviary for that transfer and banded nine birds myself – I’ve just checked my records and this happens to be one of those nine.”

Zealandia staff hope the new female will stay and add genetic variation for the local bellbird population. Conservation Manager Raewyn Empson was happy to hear about the sighting.

“She’s just in time for the spring breeding season so it would be absolutely fantastic if she sticks around. We have observed a high rate of dispersal with bellbird that makes it difficult to establish a population here – we see our birds, especially juvenile females, leaving the safety of the valley each year, often not to return. We’ve also seen the reverse - unbanded bellbird with different song dialects coming in to the sanctuary to breed; we know they’ve come from outside but we can’t know where from. It’s wonderful to get this information about the distance they can travel – she’s made a good choice if she decides to stay.”

Mana Island is closer to the mainland than Kapiti Island and Kapiti bellbirds are not banded. Banding gives conservationists useful information to track the success of translocations and resulting populations. Two of the birds from the same Kapiti-Mana transfer fell prey to mammalian pests on the mainland, one in Titahi Bay.

Although occasional single bellbirds were seen in the Wellington area before the sanctuary in Karori was fenced there was no breeding population – meaning they were functionally extinct. Bellbird are found naturally in forest parks including the Rimutakas and Tararuas but are at risk in unprotected areas from mammalian pests.

Pukeko wins 2011 "bird of the year" in New Zealand

Pukeko wins  2011 "bird of the year" in New Zealand

Australian bird guide updated

I've just received this information from Alan McBride about this updated guide, of which he is one of the authors.

First published in 1994, The Complete Guide to Finding the Birds of Australia was the first ever book of its type in Australia – a complete guide to locating every resident bird species in Australia, plus supplementary information on where to find rarities, migratory species and logistical information.
This fully revised second edition expands on the best-selling appeal of the first, describing the best-known sites for all of Australia’s endemic birds, plus vagrants and regular migrants such as seabirds and shorebirds. It covers all states and territories, and is the first guide to include all of Australia’s island and external territories. A comprehensive Bird Finder Guide details site information on all Australian bird species, and the authors provide valuable travel advice, including transport, climate and accommodation.

Profusely illustrated with colour photographs of interesting, unique or unusual Australian birds, this book is a must-have for all birdwatchers living in Australia or visiting from overseas.

see more here

New Zealand birds: shag (cormorant)

 

I love this picture - which I took in the north of the South Island

new zealand birds are singing for you

The bird on the right is the worlds biggest pigeon: the kereru; on the left is the pukeko - the native bird of my city Christchurch

Every morning my favourite radio station (Radio NZ National) plays the song of a different NZ bird. So, even though I live in the inner city I hear one of our birds. I love that!

Check it out. See and HEAR New Zealand birds here