Kāruhiruhi PIED SHAG

This year has seen me go back to university, where I am currently 12 months through a 15 month graduate teaching diploma through the University of Canterbury. This year's busy schedule has meant that my photography has been put on the back burner, and apart from a few brief trips, I've been running on the pedagogical treadmill. So naturally I've had an itchy shutter finger, and been dreaming of pointing the camera at some of my avian friends.

Although my photography has slowed down, there has been some photographic progressions. This year I received an Associateship through the Nature Photography Society of New Zealand (ANPSNZ) and the Photographic Society of New Zealand (APSNZ). I also received honours in this years Trenna Packer Salver for my 'Sea Lion Stare-down' image. My exhibitions have continued and I will be showcasing some images in Hanmer Springs in January 2014.

As the last few weeks of university came to an end, I managed to photograph a local pied shag pair (Phalacrocorax varius) as they brought up their three rapidly growing chicks. What a joy to be able to observe the pair as they built their nest, fed their chicks and interacted with one another. I really enjoy just sitting and watching nesting birds, it's amazing what you see and learn. 

What surprised me when watching this particular pair was the nest building. I was surprised to witness the chicks aiding their parents in nest construction and maintenance. I've witnessed a juvenile Australasian crested grebe aid parents with nest construction for a second clutch, although I have never observed chicks nest build while still nest bound. 

The adult would bring an offering of nest material, usually a stick, and would be greeted by it's nesting partner, who would often throw its head back and commence in a 'yawn' like greeting. The stick would be passed from adult to adult and occasionally to the chicks who would place and fasten the stick to the nest (family team work). 

I hope you enjoy the images below...

As soon as my last assignment was submitted I packed the bags and embarked on a nine day photo trip... photos to come.... keep an eye out!   

Above: Commonly described as "wing-drying" the adult dries it's wings after feeding. Note: Breeding colours present around the eye.

A whole new world: two young chicks peer out of the nest inspecting their new surroundings under their parent's watchful eye.

Begging for a feed: two young chicks beg for a feed, triggering a regurgitation reflex.

Sheltering from the elements: with a soft new down, the young chicks, shelter on a chilly evening.

With its head completely enveloped, a rapidly growing chick receives a stomach full of fish.

Nest construction - a family affair: A stick is passed down to the chick to place on the nest. 

Messy eater: A couple of fish miss their intended target.

Greetings: Greeted by a "yawn", an adult returns to the nest for a swapping of nesting duties.

'Ginger shag': When photographing the' pied shags' I was visited by this strange looking 'little pied shag'.

...Thanks for viewing...

Suspected avian botulism outbreak in Christchurch

Toll reaches over 4300

Over the past month there has been a dramatic decrease in Christchurch’s birdlife. The Avon/Heathcote Estuary and Bromley area has suffered a real loss of more than 10 per cent of the area’s bird population; a devastating blow to one of the country’s top ten sites for wetland birds. Over 4300 dead birds have been collected in the area; this number surpasses the death toll of the Rena oil spill last year. 

  White-faced heron (9.61% of population killed)

Immediately following February’s earthquake large volumes of untreated wastewater were discharged into the lower Avon and Heathcote Rivers as well as the Avon-Heathcote Estuary. 

A bird survey taken last year, a week after the February quake showed surprisingly that there were approximately 5000 more birds on the Estuary than the previous year (before the quakes), and initial fears that there would be nothing left on the Estuary due to liquefaction were quelled. The initial influx in bird numbers directly after the quake could have been due to birds flocking to the area as ‘quake refugees’.

You only have to look at the estuary and the effects of the quakes are immediately evident - the estuary is now a physically different place. The northern part of the estuary (Avon River mouth) has subsided by 0.2 - 0.5 metres from its previous level and the Southern part (Heathcote River mouth) has risen by 0.3 – 0.5 metres. According to a NIWA report there is an average elevation rise of 0.14 metres which is enough elevation to keep a million cubic metres (400 Olympic-sized swimming pools) of water from flowing in and out of the estuary, that’s one-sixth of its original flow. 

I remember being struck by the amount of liquefaction on the estuary after the February earthquake. Some parts of the estuary resembled the surface of the moon, with large crater like liquefaction mounds covering the mudflats for kilometres! NIWA estimate that up to 40 per cent of the estuary was covered by liquefaction mounds after February! Liquefaction has the potential to smother estuarine biota and I’ve noticed a dramatic reduction in epifauna especially mudsnails and mudcrabs. Crab burrows once covered much of the Avon/Heathcote estuary and there has been a visible reduction of these burrows due to liquefaction cover at my bird photography sites. Mud crabs are an important food source for birds like the kingfishers and herons and there has been a noticeable reduction in kingfishers and herons at these once popular feeding spots.   

    

A NZ Kingfisher with a mudcrab, epifauna such as mudcrabs have lost habitat due to liquefaction

On the 9^th of February an article in The Press expressed its concern with the finding of 600-800 dead birds around the Christchurch estuary, in particular Bromley oxidation ponds and the eastern wetlands area. According to council ornithologist Andrew Crossland the deaths are more to do with the fluctuating water levels and the changes in water quality due to the earthquakes. Over the weekend another article reported that the death toll now is above 4300 birds! The fatalities are thought to be a result of a suspected avian botulism outbreak due to an increase in sewage levels. The Council is working with the Department of Conservation, vets at Massey University, Ministry of Agriculture and Fish & Game to determine the cause of deaths.

The worst affected species are the paradise shelducks, which lost more than 85 per cent of their population (1415 birds), the mallard/grey ducks (49 per cent or 385 birds), and the grey teal (13 per cent or 495 birds), NZ scaup (8.54 per cent), NZ shoveler (3.5 per cent). These staggering numbers mean that there will be a substantial decrease in numbers around the estuary and Bromley, as well as at source areas and migration/dispersal destinations. Duck species are not the only ones that have suffered losses - white-faced herons, royal spoonbills, black-backed gulls and the endangered black-billed gulls, just to name a few, although these species' populations should recover in one to three years. In yesterday’s Press there was a photo of a royal spoonbill being rescued by a DOC officer, suspected of having avian botulism. Providing mildly affected birds with fresh water, shade and protection from predators may help them recover from the intoxication. 

  Male paradise shelduck (85.34% of population killed)

 

 Mallard (49.18% of population killed)

 Grey teal (13.33% of population killed)

 NZ Scaup (8.54% of population killed)

Avian botulism is a paralytic disease caused by the ingestion of a toxin produced by the bacteria, Clostridium botulinum. The bacteria require warm temperatures, a protein source and an anaerobic environment to produce the toxin, and the increased sewage levels due to the earthquakes may have been responsible for aiding in this intoxication. Birds can either ingest the toxin directly or feed on invertebrates such as maggots containing the toxin. Invertebrates are not affected by the toxin but store it up in their bodies. The spread of avian botulism happens when maggots feed on animal carcasses and ingest the toxin, birds that consume toxin-laden maggots can develop botulism after eating as few as 3 or 4 maggots, therefore the swift removal of dead birds will help minimise the spread of the disease. 

 NZ shoveler (3.50% of population killed)

Further facts about avian botulism :-

•          A paralysing, often fatal disease that is caused by a botulism bacterium.
•         Birds suffering from the toxin will have sluggish movements, and will struggle to use their wings, raise their heads or feed as it affects the nervous system.
•      Avian botulism cannot be transferred to humans.

The good news is that the numbers of dead birds being found is slowly decreasing. Regardless of the cause of mass deaths let’s hope that this decline in deaths will continue and that Christchurch will still remain one of the top ten national sites for wetland birds!

 South island pied oystercatcher (0.09% of population killed)

SPRING IS HERE

SPRING IS HERE

 

I can always tell when Spring is here because a pair of mallard ducks start knocking at my door... every Spring without fail the pair arrive on our front deck and tap on our glass sliding door wanting a feed. Spring is finally here!!! and the breeding, nesting and hatching has begun! What a wonderful time of year for a wildlife photographer. Amongst the earthquake rubble the daffodils are in full flower and our city is being transformed by Spring's vivid colours!

| Above: A pied shag with stunning breeding colours |

Lately I've been busily trying to get my images organised and I've spent the last few weeks editing and sorting through a huge number of photos... and I can happily say that I'm almost done (phew!). I always prefer to be out with the camera rather than behind a computer, although I find it interesting going through old pictures and re-discovering photos and trips again.

It's been great doing talks for photography clubs and societies... and I had a wonderful time talking to the New Brighton Photography Club on Tuesday night - what a good bunch of people! I'm looking forward to meeting and talking to the members of the Greymouth Photography Club next month and spending some time photographing some of the birds on the west coast!

 | Above & Below: The endemic Black-fronted tern |

Last Friday night a friend and I threw our kayaks on the car and headed up the coast to a place called Kaikoura to spend the weekend kayaking around the peninsula. There is always something special about kayaking around the peninsula and we were treated by some great weather, some fantastic views and great wildlife like the New Zealand fur seals. 

A special moment for me was when a reef heron flew directly over our kayaks and landed on the rock platform a few metres away. The photos below are  some of the photos of the reef heron (Egretta sacra) feeding... what a buzz considering that these secretive herons are not a common sighting in New Zealand, especially in the south island.

 

  

| Above: A banded dotterel strolls amongst the weed on the Kaikoura Peninsula |

| Above: A New Zealand dotterel preening | Below: Shag Pile, Christchurch |

It's been fantastic to have the very talented Karen Neal use some of my photos as references for her wonderful wildlife paintings. I received a print of the wonderful kingfisher painting 'Gone Fishing' recently... go check out her work!

NEW CAMERA!

My trusty old Nikon D80 was finally able to retire on Tuesday! After taking well over 200,000 shots and enduring countless hours of sand blasting, rain showers and all sorts of abuse it was able to take a well-earned break and become my back-up camera to my new Nikon D300s ... well that's what the plan was until yesterday morning...

I was photographing black-fronted terns yesterday morning and really enjoying the fast focus and frames per second (fps) of my new camera when the shutter release button decided to seize up on me!!! I've had the camera for three days and it's already in the shop for repairs!! We'll the trusty old D80 has been brought out of retirement until the D300s is fixed (luckily under warranty)!  

The photo above is of a few of the bar-tailed godwits which have decided to stay here in Christchurch for the winter and earthquakes (brave birds) instead of migrating to Alaska for the summer. The photo to the left is of a juvenile little pied shag drying its wings.

The series below is of the two species of oystercatchers found here in New Zealand, the South Island Pied Oystercatcher (SIPO) and the endemic Variable Oystercatcher.

The South Island pied oystercatchers (Haematopus finschi) unlike their variable cousins breed inland along rivers, lakes and cultivated land; sometimes as far inland as the Southern Alps. In winter the birds congregate on the coast and can be found throughout New Zealand.

Variable oystercatchers (Haematopus unicolor) breed throughout New Zealand and nest on the coast usually in between rocks or on sand dunes (see the eggs in the photo below). Variable oystercatchers are predominantly black in colour, although their frontal plumage can range from solid black to pied. They can be identified as they are slightly larger than SIPOs.

South Island Pied Oystercatchers approach their high tide roost on the Avon/Heathcote Estuary.

South Island Pied Oystercatcher (Haematopus finschi)  

A juvenile SIPO searches for food on the mud flats of the Avon/Heathcote Estuary

Above and below: variable oystercatchers defend their territory from rival pairs

Its amazing to watch oystercatchers find, probe and open mussels and cockles in one swift motion, and the ease at which they pull chitons from the rocks is amazing - those things dont come off easily!!

eft: Variable Oystercatcher eggs

* A big thanks to the guys at Photo & Video for having me as their guest photographer last month!

* And thanks to David Streeten from StreetwiseDesign for featuring me on his bulletin board !

I cant wait to get my new camera back!!!

OUT & ABOUT...

As well as kingfishers, black-fronted terns (Above) are also common visitors to the coast during the colder months, So lately I've found myself venturing to one of my favourite spots just out of Christchurch to photograph these handsome little birds. I got up early yesterday morning to continue my quest in capturing the terns, It was a beautiful day with soft Autumn lighting, and I spent the best part of the morning crawling after a group of roosting terns who would scatter every now and then as a dog or walker would venture to close to the resting flock. Keep an eye out for a black-fronted tern post!! I managed to see a white-winged black tern which was a first for me (uncommon Asian migrant)! 

On the way back from photographing the terns I was reacquainted with an old friend, a black stilt Himantopus novaezelandiae (above), who I've been photographing in this area on and off for the past few years. Black stilts are endemic to New Zealand and are still considered the world's rarest wading bird!!! There were only 23 black stilts left in 1981. So it was a real pleasure to spend time photographing this beautiful bird who has been hanging out with it's more common cousins, pied stilts (below). Thanks to intensive management numbers are on the increase, according to a February 2010 estimate there was 85 black stilts in the wild.

                                                                                                                                      Female blackbird

                                          Young mallard ducklings follow each other over the Lilly pads

                                                                                                     Male California quail

                                                                                                                                           Male Bellbird 

                                                                                   Little blue penguin, Kaikoura, NZ

Shag Rock, one Christchurch's iconic natural formations will never be the same after the 6.3 magnitude earthquake which hit here on February the 22nd 2011. The photo on the right is what shag rock looked like before the quake and below are photos of Shag Rock now (Shag Pile)... I think it still has some charm and almost looks like a giant hand pushing up through the rubble (if you look hard enough)...