a day for the birds...

i took advantage of what might be the last day of good weather in auckland before i leave on friday to visit tiritiri matangi, a predator-free haven for native birds. i visited the island about ten years ago and had such a great time that i wanted to go back. today's trip was just as great! native birds galore...takahe, saddleback, whitehead, stitch bird, fantail, pukeko, bell bird, kakariki, fern bird, tui, kereru, robin...and even a kokako! in addition to the birds, tiritiri is awesome because the department of conservation has been working to re-vegetate the island with native plants. at one point during my hike i stopped near a manuka bush...it smelled SO good, just like the honey! a lesson i relearned today: song birds are really challenging to photograph, especially when they are flitting about in dense vegetation. here are a few gems...

 bell bird

 kakariki (parakeet) on flax

 kereru (about 3x bigger than a standard pigeon)

 a lovely day at the beach

 tiritiri matangi lighthouse

 stump from a tree fern

 a lovely pukeko

 north island robin

 my favorite shot of the day - a saddleback in flight

 a more sedentary saddleback

 an acrobatic stitchbird

 a conservation success story - the takahe

and last but not least, the bird with
some serious vocal acrobatic chops - the tui