Miraz Jordan

Deb and I biked up the road to the Bream Bay Combined Arts Group exhibition. This year I bought a Kingfisher for the garden. 🐦

I'd just turned my camera towards the spoonbill standing on the mudflat when there was a great kerfuffle and two spoonbills were in flight. On examination the photos show a white-faced heron was also involved. 🐦

Tūturiwhatu | NZ Dotterels are small birds, about twice the size of a sparrow, but way heavier. Dotterel: Length: 25 cm; Weight: 146 g vs Sparrow: Length: 15 cm; Weight: 28 g. 🐦

New Zealand dotterels are found on or near the coast around much of the North Island.

So this afternoon when I realised the 'leaf' blowing along the beach was in fact a Dotterel chick, you can imagine just how tiny it was (well, 3 of them actually). I kept my distance.

I'm still hoping to see one of these birds for myself one day, especially since they're literally just down the road — Saving Tara-iti shell by shell: 🐦

On an overcast winter's day at Bream Bay, about 20 people are doing something that, at first glance, seems a little odd.

They are shovelling shells into hessian sacks and moving them from one part of the beach to another. But the painstaking work has a purpose: creating safe places for tara-iti, New Zealand fairy tern, to nest.

There are only about 45 of the birds left, making the subspecies one of New Zealand's rarest endemic breeding bird.

At the weekend the digger, dump truck and roller take a break and the pūkeko can come out to play — even the babies. 🐦

The other day I chatted with a further away neighbour and patted her cute little attention-seeking dog Molly. That didn't stop Molly barking furiously as I passed today. 😒

When I neared the river I could see sheep on the other side.

Further along the river a spoonbill was fishing. 🐦

Those are weird looking gulls, I thought yesterday as I wandered by Ruakākā Estuary. Then I realised the flock of 15 or so birds fishing, was in fact tākapu | gannets. 🐦

 

 

 

The Pūkeko baby came back! 🐦

What a cutie.

 

A neighbour down the road has this flock of Cape Barren geese on his very large property. 🐦

A pleasing trip to Ruakākā Estuary today, included watching this spoonbill fishing. 🐦

A few minutes ago I was outside and spotted a couple of pukeko, in spite of the ongoing earthworks behind us. Then I saw a tiny chick pop into view before immediately taking fright and disappearing again. 🐦

I'll be on the lookout now, and hope there's more than one.

Up by Kiwi North in Maunu, Whangārei, is the wild bird rescue centre where we can't go in. Next door though is a room full of bird information, especially taxidermied birds of all kinds. 🐦

Hanging from the ceiling were numerous sea birds, including this enormous albatross.

I walked briskly to the shops for a haircut: 20 minutes, 1.86 Km and back along the grassy riverbank: 29 minutes, 2.00 Km.

On my way past the bakery I bought an Apple Turnover, which I ate by the river.

There were gulls and a couple of Arctic Terns on the sand bank in the river. 🐦

It's the time of year for the Godwits to return from the northern hemisphere … and on today's visit to the beach I was delighted to find maybe a thousand of them resting up. 🐦

NZ dotterels really are my favourites. Usually they dart about. This one decided to have a more leisurely moment. 🐦

As I left the beach I spotted this vibrant flower, perhaps a Cape Weed, in the dunes.

It's a while since I entered the beach from the track opposite the racecourse. As I parked the car I startled a white-faced heron. I thought it was going to lead me all the way to the beach, but before long it flew over the fence and into the dunes. 🐦

The track leads the eye to Hen Island.

A delightful start to the day. At 0535 I was passing an open window when I heard a Ruru | Morepork call half a dozen times from nearby trees. 🐦

This terrible photo from 2008 is the only one I've ever managed to take. I think it was at Zealandia in Wellington.

Two birds caught my eye at the estuary today: a kingfisher and a New Zealand Dotterel. 🐦

Congratulations to the Department of Conservation's Kākāpō Recovery Programme. This represents so much hard work by so many people — Kākāpō Population Soars to 325: 🐦

The 2026 kākāpō breeding season, the biggest on record, has come to an end with a bumper number of kākāpō chicks produced. The youngest chick has just passed 150 days old, a milestone that marks its independence.

We had 90 chicks reach that milestone," …

Matuku moana | White-faced heron: 🐦

In flight the white-faced heron usually tucks its head back towards its shoulders in the characteristic heron posture

Taranui | Caspian tern: 🐦

Caspian terns are silver-grey above and white below, with dark wing tips. The tail is relatively short and only slightly forked compared to other terns. The large bill is mostly bright red in adults, becoming dark near the tip…. Adults have black legs and a black cap to below the eye during the breeding season.

I was the only human on the beach at Waipū Estuary this morning. There were gulls, Oystercatchers, and my favourites, the Dotterels. 🐦

Yesterday I went to the estuary specifically take take photos of birds. It's been a while …

Those posts in the sand are strung with wire to discourage folks from entering, so the birds have a chance to nest. 🐦

It was one of those days when the sun was shining from a blue sky, but the air just wasn't very clear.

This tanker(?) was on its way to Northport.

Meanwhile these Oystercatchers were puddling around. 🐦

Hmm, I won't take my big camera on my bike ride to the estuary this morning

…

But if I had, then I might have caught a decent picture of the spoonbill fishing, rather than the 8x iPhone snap. 🐦