December 17, 2014 … a tale with two cameras

The weird weather continued.

Tui plumage in just the right light

 

Yesterday was the most impressive day of the year so far, with temperatures reaching around 27 degrees C. It was calm, clear and warm. Pauatahanui seemed like a place to begin, and there, in the walkway leading to the bird hide, there were tui, gathering nectar from the flax flowers. At a distance,tui look black except for the ruff at the throat. If you catch them in the right light, they have magnificent plumage.

The same tui with the sun at a different angle

 

The light was so good for the purpose that I can’t resist a second tui shot. As you can see the colours vary with the angle of the light.

Pied stilt foraging among the weed at Pauatahanui

 

In the hide I could see several pied stilts. Despite their slender grace, and delicate appearance they are bullies and tend to chase other bids away quite aggressively.

Warning flight to chase me away from the nest

 

It is clear that there are nests nearby, perhaps even chicks because, when I emerged from the hide, there were squawks of alarm and I was circled closely by several stilts who variously dived close to me, or attempted the old “broken wing” decoy trick to make sure I didn’t approach the nests. Of course, I wouldn’t.

Pukerua Bay beach … Kapiti Island in the distance

 

In Pukerua Bay, the water near the beach was mirror-calm and I found the flip-out LCD panel allowed me to get a low view across the rocks to Kapiti Island.

O Tannenbaum

 

As I left Pukerua Bay I noticed this outburst of seasonal sentiment made from driftwood.

That’s all for now.