The first four bar-tailed godwit have arrived after an 11,500-kilometer flight from Alaska to our local estuary. They seem in good shape and have settled in with the other shorebirds shown in the cropped photo below with a South Island pied oystercatcher and pied stilt.
We look forward to the flock increasing as more adults and then juvenile birds take advantage of favorable winds to assist with the return journey from the Arctic breeding areas.
Their return to New Zealand is to take advantage of the many estuaries and harbours that offer good feeding opportunities during our southern hemisphere summer escaping the cold conditions of Alaska.
They will stay with us in New Zealand before a return journey northward via China in March 2025 to begin the cycle again.
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| Four newly arrived godwit with other shorebirds |
Photos to follow.