Skulls, swans and kingfishers

I went down to Petone today to see if George (the white heron) was about. I have seen some lovely images by a fellow photographer just recently showing him in residence but alas he was no where to be seen. I spent some time there chatting to the locals and seeing what was about. This collection of images is the result.

As soon as this swan saw me, it started swimming directly towards me. I am assuming it was expecting to be fed, maybe it had read my car's number plate, but as soon as it realised there was nothing to be had it lost interest and swam away.

There were kingfishers about but they are very skittish here and it is very hard to get close enough to them to get a decent shot. The tide wasn't out far enough to get out the hide. I did manage a few images though.

There were a good number of shags there today and this last image is of one trying to dry itself. I think someone forgot to mention to it that there was no sunshine today - hardly even a breeze!

Hikoikoi Reserve - Petone Estuary

The last post was from Sunday afternoon, so now we go back in time a few hours to Sunday morning. We followed the low tide to Petone and parked up by the boat sheds. One of them is currently for sale and it is an enticing possibility - however if given the choice of a boat shed or early retirement I am afraid the boat shed lost.

The light was not great with the sun shining in our faces and the birds were not playing fair either but I still managed to get a few shots.  We have positioned a new log for the kingfishers, hopefully next time we go down it is still there and the birds are using it. If they do it will make photographing them so much easier.

Even when it rains...

I checked the weather report - it said fine - I looked out the window and saw blue skies and sunshine, so I have to wonder where all the rain came from. It was like as soon as I take the camera out the rain comes down!

Well I beat the rain today, I had my coat and the camera had it's coat and we went in search of kingfishers regardless of the rain. For a short time anyway, then the rain go too heavy for me to want to be there kingfishers or not.

We spied a boatshed that is up for sale while we were there and the thought of having ready shelter, a handy toilet and somewhere to wait out the rain bought forth all sorts of ideas. Not sure if they will go anywhere but there is an opportunity to set up a really good base for budding photographers like myself.

Some of these images you can clearly see the rain, others just a drab day. Regardless of the weather there were a lot of kingfishers flitting about so I am happy that I achieved something for the effort.

Seagulls...

 

It is very easy to forget about seagulls as photographic subjects but when there isn't much else around they can be very interesting to watch!  Yesterday I went down to the Petone Estuary for a short while and the seagulls were doing some really weird stuff. Not what I have seen seagulls doing before that's for sure.

The gulls were actually leaping into the air and then diving head first under the water and fishing for crabs. I didn't see many of them actually find the crabs, often they would resurface with nothing but a leaf in their beak.  The ones that did find the crabs had trouble holding on to them once caught - several crabs managed to live another day albeit minus a leg or two.

Waiting for the tides to change

Juvenile Royal Spoonbill

I can't get out to the kingfishers this week due to the tides being all wrong and I am not enjoying the wait for them to be right again. My obsession is screaming at me to take more kingfisher photos yet when I follow the tides and go to Petone all I find is spoonbills. Crazy when only a few months ago I was complaining about not being able to photograph the spoonbills!

The kingfishers at Petone are wise to me. I did see one in the distance but it wasn't going to let my lens get anywhere near close enough to photograph it. So instead I sat and waited for something, anything to walk in front of my lens. The juvenile spoonbill was the first to arrive doing a special rain dance just for me.

Not long after the parent bird joined in and they worked in unison up and down the channel in search of food. Every now and then the young one would nip at the parent's leg and would get growled at for its efforts. It may be looking more and more like an adult bird but its behaviour is anything but.

I doubt that the camera will be out much this week because I have to admit I am bored with the Petone Estuary at the moment. I want kingfishers damn it and I want them where I want them! I know, I don't want much but next week I should be able to get back to Pauatahanui again and finger crossed the kingfishers will play nicely for me when I do get there.

Chasing time and tides

Yesterday my allocated time for photography didn't fit with the tides at Pauatahanui, so we headed down to the Petone Estuary for a change.  I parked myself on the opposite side of the lagoon to normal and sat and waited. It was a matter of minutes before two Royal Spoonbills flew in to feed. They were feeding almost before they had folded up their wings!  Guess they were hungry.

Adult Royal Spoonbill displaying breeding plumage.

The spoonbills made their way from one side of the lagoon to the other depending on where there were people, dogs and bicycles disturbing them. I had parked myself in the right position because each time someone or something spooked them, they came back to where I was, and they didn't see to worried about me. Probably because I didn't move a whole lot.

As we were leaving I noticed (pointed out by my husband) that there were two herons really close to the path we were walking down. One of them was a juvenile having a bad hair day!  Looked kind of cute with its head feathers all fluffed up. I did see one kingfisher while we were there but that was only for a fleeting moment. The slower birds just aren't as much fun as the kingfishers!

Adult White-faced Heron with the crab that got away!

Juvenile White-faced Heron

Juvenile White-faced Heron

Respecting space

Juvenile spoonbill

There are a lot of nature photographers that frequent my usual haunts and for the most part they are a friendly considerate bunch. We may not all know each other but we will usually wave 'hello' or get into a discussion about the birds that are about and where to find them. 

We are also very careful not to upset the birds in their natural environment. We are observers and as such shouldn't make the birds uncomfortable with our presence. Royal Spoonbills I have noticed along with the White-faced Herons have a very definite 'space' and if you breach it in any way that's it they are gone.

Spoonbills over the far side of the lagoon.

Last evening I took my camp chair and parked myself at the Petone Estuary. I find that if I just sit and wait the birds will cease to see me as a threat and will come to me. It is way better than chasing them from one side of the lagoon to the other and way less stressful on the birds. I saw the spoonbills over the other side of the lagoon happily feeding and figured if I wait long enough they would make their way over.  Then a few minutes later I see another photographer all dressed in green with his tripod and camera scare the birds away in his attempt to get close to them.

In flight after being scared off.

To say I was annoyed was an understatement, as the birds flew off into the distance I decided I would have to make do with the gulls and oyster catchers. The other photographer headed off in the direction the spoonbills took and I didn't see him or the spoonbills again for a while.

Juvenile spoonbill

After about thirty minutes of sitting and watching, I was lucky enough to have the juvenile spoonbill and it's parent fly in to start feeding in the water nearby. I was in photographer's heaven when the other three adult birds joined them - right in front of me!

The four adult spoonbills

I clicked away happily enjoying their closeness thinking I should share this wonder. I rang friend and fellow photographer suggesting that she come down and bring her camera with her.

Adult spoonbill catching shrimp

Between calling my friend and her arriving, the other photographer dressed in green had followed the spoonbills to where I was. He walked past me and then set himself up in the bush above where the birds were feeding. Way to close for them to be comfortable as was plain to see by the way they instantly started moving away. Once they were out of reach of his lens and mine, (they flew back to the other side of the lagoon) he packed up and set about following them back to the other side to repeat the exercise.

Adult and juvenile spoonbill

Eventually he left, the spoonbills returned to feeding where we were still sitting, and both myself and my friend managed to get some great shots. I am still annoyed about the unnecessary stress placed on the birds - being chased from one end of the estuary to the other - and the fact that the other photographer didn't give a toss that he might be ruining someone else's chances at photographing them.

Still water provided a mirror image

Spoonbills and swans

We ventured down to the Petone Estuary a few hours before high tide yesterday. The tide was coming in fast which meant that I needed to be careful about where I was standing a few times but it also meant that if the birds wanted to remain standing they have to move closer to shore too. I was hoping to see some kingfishers but there was pretty much everything but.

Not long after arriving and spotting a group of spoonbills, I noticed that one of them was dancing about quite a bit. After looking through the lens it became obvious that this one was smaller than the rest and without the usual yellow brow. It was also being really annoying to one of the adult birds seeking food. I have never seen a juvenile spoonbill before so was rapt at the photographic opportunity unfolding before me.

I followed the young bird with my lens while it tried every trick under the sun to get fed by the adult but alas it was not fed and I didn't get a shot of spoonbills feeding their young. Another time perhaps, I am more than happy with the shots I did get.

As the tide came in the birds got a bit restless and gave signs of flying off. A couple did a circuit or two before returning to the rest, but they didn't leave. Perhaps they did it specially for me so I could practice my panning! Sounds good anyway.  I waited for them to fly off but in the end they had more patience than me and I headed home.

 

There were swans all over the place the entire time I was there and I pretty much ignored them after spying the young spoonbill. I did however give them some attention when it looked like there was going to be a fight between a few of them. Feathers were ruffled and they did puff their chests out a bit, but the fight was avoided.