'Giving Nature a Voice'

It was a surprise today to see that we made front page news  following our Naturepath press interview at Tuff Crater with Hannah Morris from the North Shore Times.  

Anne and I were very pleased to be able to express the views of our Forest and Bird North Shore Branch that a route incorporating Tuff Crater could avoid the NZ transport  option of a pathway running on the Eastern side of Shoal Bay so putting at risk and possible causing disturbance to our threatened NZ dotterels nesting along the edge of the motorway.

Naturepath would also be very accessible to the community to join at many points along its route.

Cinnamon

At the Ngataringa Community gardens today on a photographic project and watched this whitebird (blackbird) gathering nesting material.

When I  mentioned this to the Ngataringa team people they just casually said "Oh that's Cinnamon".

Piha with Bot Soc

The weather forecast was not looking good for the Waitakere Ranges however the rain kept off for most of our walk today. The sea was wild with a very strong westerly.

 

More to follow and photos

Press Release!

Enjoyed meeting up today with Hannah Morris from the North Shore Times and Anne, another North Shore F&B committee member. Hannah had shown an interest in Naturepath and had agreed to meet at Heath Reserve right next to Tuff Crater so that we could outline the route of Naturepath.


Hannah Morris photographs Anne and I overlooking Shoal Bay and the entrance to Tuff Crater.

Hannah and I have corresponded before regarding the pelicans on the Northern Waroa River near Dargaville when a small group from our local branch went on a pelican hunt in September 2013.

Hannah wrote up an article complete with photos about these visitors from Australia.

Tuff Crater entrance and the proposed route of Naturepath

Today we were showing  Hannah the  advantages of this nature friendly route, Naturepath, which would help protect the dotterels nesting on the East side of the motorway and also would link with community and Tuff crater.

New Website

That is protecting the NZ dotterels nesting in  Shoal bay.  Please check out my new Forest & Bird web for Naturepath. http://naturepathnorthshore.blogspot.co.nz/ and the 'About Me' link with NZ dotterel information.

 It's gradually being added to..........................

Bryde's Whale on East Coast Beach

Thank you Judy for allowing me, at late notice, to photograph your class at the Kaipatiki nursery this morning. It was a good opportunity to learn the process which will help with other sequencing photos that I may be taking soon.

A Bryde's whale was washed up on the East coast beach below Mangawhai but my change of plans didn't allow me to get to see this and the flooded river would have been impossible to cross particularly with the high tides at the moment. A team from the University were called.  I gather that the whale was approximately 11 metres long.

 It appears from expert examination that this whale was hit by a ship. Unfortunately this is how many of these whales are killed in the Hauraki Gulf. 

Good to meet up later Eliane and I enjoyed Rixs party. The fireworks were hilarious and some of the conversations and although I believe you could have danced for another three hours, I'm pleased that I didn't.

Under the Clock Tower

It's a date Eliane. I will be wearing something sassy-my walking boots!
And so we met for lunch and then had a muddy climb all the way to the top of Mt Tamahunga checking a new trap line that followed the fence line which appeared to be a favourite path for cattle hence the deep mud almost all the way to the top.

 It was steep and a funny moment when after negotiating some mud Eliane decided to clean her boots in the stream only to sink deeper the moment she stepped out of the stream. We laughed as her boots sunk deeper than before into the sticky squelchy mud but then I had to follow her and do the same.

 The descent was better via another trap line which followed a drier route. Just rats in the traps today which seems to correlate with winter and wetter weather as they search and take more risks for food.


A good fun walk with our usual humour and a very enjoyable day also visiting a little island before the light faded and not quite getting marooned for the night and having to fight over my muesli bar for breakfast. This was followed by a delicious Indian meal accompanied by a glass or two of Pino Gris.

Botanic gardens for the spring blossom

The botanic gardens put on a great show today of spring blossom and tuis were feeding everywhere. This is a great time of the year to relax and have time for reflection in these beautiful gardens.

Then later to Shoal Bay to check out the 3.3metre tide. Met up with one of the locals and passed on the good news that the Interpretive sign I have been working on with Forest and Bird using my  bird photography to show off the habitat has had the go-ahead from the Council. All we have to do now is cost it out, build it and then install it.

Kaipatiki Project planting at Eskdale Reserve.

I was pleased to be asked by Lisa to photography the Kaipatiki Project community planting at Eskdale Reserve this morning. This followed Andrea helping out on one of our recent Forest and Bird planting days at Tuff Crater. There was a great turn out of families and local supporters today.

 It had rained heavily last night so the planting area soon became swampy but this deterred no-one and I think for some of the children it added to the fun.

A great effort by all and a well organised planting by the Kaipatiki Project team.

I couldn't stop for the sausage sizzle as I had a lunch date at The Lake house in Takapuna and it was good to chat with a friend who I haven't seen for some time..

Boats cancelled -Strong Easterlies.

My visit today to Motuora Island has been cancelled due to strong Easterlies. The Tiri Island catamaran has also been cancelled. So we will catch up on other things today.

I was hoping  to be involved in more weta survey work. But also wanted to photograph spring flowers on the Island.

Karo is now in flower at Tuff crater, some trees showing their seed pods too.

I expect these high winds will cause many Karo flowers to drop.

Kahikatea Planting at Tuff

Ten large and very heavy kaihikatea trees donated by Don Turner of Takana plants were planted in wet areas this morning at Tuff Crater by a small group of Forest and Bird and other community volunteers. These trees love to have their feet wet and I have often watched silvereye birds searching for insects in kahikatea on the other side of the lagoon. Monarch  butterflies seem to also like feeding on them and I'm sure other small insects too..

Photos to follow....................

Fishing or Trapping?

Well actually some of both. We waded across the river, it was cold just 10 degrees. The air temperature around 11 degrees with the wind chill of a persistent southerly breeze down the river. But the sun was shining and Eliane was keen to continue her fish survey.

Native freshwater Crayfish / koura





I was keen to help and see what might turn up this time. This survey should give an indication of the health of the river and show the potential for food for foraging terns to feed their chicks. These native crayfish/koura are a good indication of healthy water quality.

Great evening with Suzy, George,

Anne, Eliane. Thanks All and a great wine choice Anne. You danced  your legs of at the 'Harley D' club Eliane!

 

More to follow.....................

Naturepath

Introducing Naturepath. A North Shore, Forest and Bird initiative for a proposed NATURE friendly cycleway and walkway linking the proposed harbour bridge Skypath, linking Northcote and Takapuna via Tuff Crater Reserve. This route avoids the sensitive Shoal Bay area which is a Site of Special Wildlife Interest.
 Naturepath Cycleway Route

////////

Harker Reserve -Tuakau

                                       Vivien falls Harker Reserve

A Bot Soc walk today. in the Harker bush reserve. I was pleased to get to grips with the identification on Diplodium trullifolium  with help from the group pointing out the embossed lower leaves and trowel like upper stem leaves

Mt.Tamahunga

Tagged along with Eliane for  a stroll checking 28 traps on Mt Tamahunga today along three trap lines.
Access to the forest across farmland to reach the  bush with stunning views to the coast.

Large rimu, tairaire, tawa and nikau.
The bright small red  berries of nertera carpet the forest floor in some place as we climbed the ridges and crossed streams in the valleys of Tamahunga bush reserve following the trap lines.

Then checking six coastal traps.

Thank you Anne for cooking dinner for two hungry people and thank you John for entertaining us. A neat evening

Karekare-Waitakeres

Following on from our recent trek up Whatipu beach I wanted to explore the Karekare end in more detail.

The idea was to  walk over the Zion hill track then down to the beach to check out the Tunnel campsite, exploring the wetlands on the way. It was a bit of a mud-slide coming down the hill but what can you expect it's the Waitakeres in winter.

I have been wanting to do this for quite some time but have been beaten by time, tide and weather. You can see from my star jump attempts that I was pleased to be here. Eliane was keen to explore a new area too.

Today was perfect and there are now plans to camp at the Tunnel campsite sometime in the future.

 Waterup or waterfall? Eliane is checking.

The longest mud slide?

Wrybill

Late entry.  I watched 43 wrybill feeding at low tide on the Bayswater side of Shoal Bay on Monday 28th July. Apparently there are 2500 at Miranda at the present time.

Wetapunga on Motuora Island

A change of plans today, on a cool but blue sky winters day, when Chris Green from DOC asked me to assist him for the day recording and checking on wetapunga (giant weta) on Motuora Island.

A large number of wetapunga reared at Auckland zoo had previously been released, housed in bamboo pipes on the Island and today we were checking and recording any weta still found inhabiting the pipes after their release.

This was a tree planting day on the Island and a big event with the larger group of 105 people but Chris and I were on the  East  side of the Island following the release line through the bush and it was all extremely interesting. Thanks Chris for sharing your knowledge  especially  how to spot wetapunga in trees. I will give that a try. I look forward to another opportunity to help with this project.


Nice evening Eliane, good to catch up, enjoyed the meal. I was ready for that after my day chasing wetas on the Island.

Roll On Summer

The silly grin is because what you can't see in this photo is the rather unpleasant sight of my self cooked evening meal, that I had just rescued, from nearly dropping 'jam side down' on the grass. Kitchens are dangerous places for me and I have caused explosions in microwaves.  A camp stove should be easy. However it nearly always ends badly.

 

This was in January this year camping on my favourite Island, Motuihe.  I like to have the Island to myself but good company is also welcome. It’s a busy schedule. Up at dawn for the sunrise and out at dusk watching for little- spotted kiwi and tuatara . Sadly there are less boats now to the Island  and the storm damage to the pier doesn’t help with that. I am really looking forward to going back this coming summer. So if you are passing and would like to join me for an evening meal, especially if you are a good cook, then just look out for my little blue tent……

Oh and please bring along a fire extinguisher, just in case!

High Tide Dotterel Roost in Car Park

I've long been  fascinated that   NZ dotterels regularly  roost at high tide in the Warehouse Way car park high above Shoal Bay. On Sunday 20th of July I counted a total of 26 dotterel including 8 banded dotterel.

We  have been working on a dog review submission to get more protection for the nesting and feeding sites in Shoal Bay.

8 days later

I talked about shifting sands on my last visit to the two East coast beaches with Eliane on the 12th July and here we are 8 days later. Today the DOC sign was virtually covered.

Wading across two rivers today was cold work and the second river proved too deep and we had to turn back and admit defeat. It was good to get back into warm dry clothes. The traps will have to wait until another time for checking.

 Photos and more too follow.................

Lava Rock Forests of Mt Eden.

A visit to the grounds of Government House and the Eden Gardens with Bot Soc on what must be the coldest day this year.

We could only stay for these two sites today. An Interesting tour by our guide. 

Photos and more to follow..............

Taking a Walk on the Wild Side - Whatipu.

Whatipu revisited. It's always good to lay down new memories next to old. That doesn't mean that the old ones are diminished in any way. It's a while since I had been to Whatipu beach, the last time with Bot Soc. A friend had missed out on a trip there too and so we picked a great day for a walk up the beach to Karekare.

The sun was shining but a brisk Southerly reduced the temperature to around 13C but in
the shelter of the dunes it was warm and the black sand underfoot was pleasant.

Here Eliane is snapping some large bird prints which we think are bittern prints. We also saw paradise duck, pied stilts, banded dotterel and this NZ pipit feeding. We heard but didn't see fernbird.

We stayed until the sun began to set then headed back to my local Indian restaurant where Eliane chose a delicious vegetarian meal to share based on her visits to India. I'm learning to enjoy the variety of flavours available in Indian food.

Shifting Sands then Wet Wet Wet!

A good start with clear skies but then no need to throw myself in the river this week although I might have stayed drier if I had.

I had promised to help with carrying some gear to the river site on the East coast and part way through the forest  just before we reached the dunes and beach the rain started, then became torrential the moment we left the relative shelter of the forest.

Eliane checked the traps several of which were buried  in the sand -dunes from the recent cyclone. I went back for more gear hoping for some shelter in the forest but it made no difference. Fortunately I had donned my rain gear just in time. Eliane didn't and ended up soaked. We eventually abandoned the project for another day but at least I felt I had done my part which was helping to carry everything in.

We headed home to get into dry clothes and spent an hour or two thumbing  through my Kashmir book, admiring the beautiful photos. Then  it was my turn  to choose somewhere for dinner.

Kotuku

The 'F word.' Fun of course! That's what yesterday turned out to be, well hilarious actually mostly at my expense. We had arranged to meet to walk to some East coast beaches to check traps and later meet up with a scientist to check on Kauri dieback disease in a local Reserve.  

The first beach went fine but as with the other traps checked later there would be no catches today. However to our delight a white heron was feeding with a group of black shags so we had some good views of that. Eliane fixed up some posts ready for the Summer season. We skipped the second beach to be in time to meet up with Tony and went onto our third beach site heading through the forest  after chatting to the young guys herding the cattle from some rather wet fields.

 At the beach the various combinations of planting for restoration were discussed. We crossed the river at a shallow point and  spent an hour or so collecting shells then moving them to suitable spot to attract nesting birds. It was while carrying a couple of bags of shells back across the river that I decided to try a shallower crossing where the river met the sea but this turned out to be a fatal error.  I disappeared under to about chest height. It was too late that I realised that the flow of water had gauged out the river bed deeply.

Lunch was next as I changed into my rain gear over-pants. Eliane thought I looked like a Ninja with my black merino top on too. Tony thought I should wear a berka to complete the outfit. I thought I should take up cycling with the Lycra sensation of the over trousers which I was beginning to enjoy. The rest is unrepeatable.


The pied stilt family of two adults and two juveniles are still together with an additional adult. The family have been together since January this year.

Later our forest walk up to the ridge was interesting but didn't quite hit the spot for finding diseased trees and soon the light would have been failing under the trees. Tony headed home and Eliane and I headed back to the beach we had missed earlier to complete the trap checking and re-baiting and then home for a welcomed evening meal and glass or two of wine.