This was timed perfectly with an article that I had been helping a reporter from the North Shore Times put together and which appeared online the day before.
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https://i.stuff.co.nz/environment/106850781/after-12000km-flight-godwits-arrive-in-auckland-bay-to-largescale-developments
As I approached Ngataringa estuary just before high tide I saw two groups of birds take off probably due to the strong winds hitting the shell bank there and so they were flying in the direction of Shoal bay. I was soon able to locate a small group of South Island pied oystercatcher ( SIPOS) and 10 bar-tailed godwit resting on a shell bank. Later I also found three other godwit on another shell bank also in Shoal Bay.
The birds looked in remarkably good condition considering their 11.5 thousand kilometre flight from Alaska.
Today I returned to all three shell banks to check them out and the ten godwit were still present as a group with the SIPOS nearby.