Forest flashback

After nearly twenty years of pest control in this piece of forest we see and hear a noticeable increase in bird life. Tui, bellbird, tomtit, silvereye, grey warbler, kingfisher, shining cuckoo, fantail and morepork numbers all seem to have benefitted. However, it is sobering to imagine what we might have experienced when the largest trees in this forest were mere saplings. Prior to the arrival of humans, and rats and mustelids in particular, the forest was an astonishing place.

Deep in the forest we might have come across the two metre high Giant Moa stretching even higher to graze the vegetation. We might have caught a glimpse of a Little Bush Moa as it scurried into the dense ferns and scrub to escape the eagle eye of a circling Forbes' Harrier.

Little Bush Moa

Another possible predator would have been the flightless Adzebill, a very large, grey Takahe-like bird with a huge bill. This may have been searching for young seabirds in their nesting burrows below the higher peaks and ridges.

 Another flightless and possibly nocturnal small rail-like bird, the Snipe rail could also have been feeding amongst the forest litter.

Snipe Rail

At night calling morepork would have shared the rocky crags and larger rotten trees with another owl, the much larger Laughing Owl or Whekau. The naturalist Thomas Potts commented that "If its cry resembles laughter at all, it is the uncontrollable outburst, the convulsive shout of insanity". The Whekau spent a lot of time on the ground hunting native bats that fed in the forest litter.

An unusual nocturnal resident may have been the New Zealand owlet-nightjar which was virtually flightless and also spent time hunting insects on the forest floor.

Owlet Nightjar 

In addition to all our native song birds today we would have seen and heard many of the rare endemics now restricted to predator free islands and fenced reserves. As well as all these, we could have seen two species of flightless wren searching the forest floor for insects - the Bush wren or Matuhi and the Stout-legged wren.

Bush Wren

Finally, Huia and North Island piopio would join the chorus of Kokako, Saddleback, Robin and Stitchbird.

Piopio

Much of this has gone forever. It is our responsibility to do everything we can to protect the remnant that is left - it is all we have got and it is doubly precious as a result.

Extinct species referred to:-

North Island giant moa  Dinornis novaezelandiae

Little bush moa  Anomalopteryx didiformis

Forbes' harrier  Circus teauteensis

North Island adzebill  Aptornis otidiformis

Snipe rail  Capellirallus karma

Laughing owl  Sceloglaux albifacies

New Zealand owlet-nightjar  Aegotheles novaezelandiae

Stout-legged wren  Pachyplichas yaldwyni

Bush wren  Xenicus longipes

Huia  Heteralocha acutirostris

North Island piopio  Turnagra tanager

Information on these species has been drawn from "Extinct Birds of New Zealand" by Alan Tennyson and Paul Martinson published by Te Papa Press.

Harriers and Kereru

Ex cyclone Hola recently passed east of the Peninsula only dumping 50mm of rain and packing moderate winds. It has been a wet year so far with more than 650mm of rain recorded at the house. It will have been a lot more higher up the divide. 

With continuous rain and wind I spent some time yesterday watching the forest for activity from the comfort of the living room. Flocks of silvereye feeding in the lower vegetation were blown from one spot to another and every so often a kereru would fly up into the gale to ride the buffeting wind before hurtling back into the canopy of an emergent rata. It is difficult to imagine any purpose to these sallies other than sheer enjoyment in the power of the elements and their mastery of them. 

Watching the kereru got me to thinking about one characteristic behavior we have frequently observed. Whenever a Swamp Harrier (also known as the Australasian Harrier or Harrier Hawk) drifts up the valley quartering the forest, kereru will fly up from the forest canopy and fly around apparently in some panic until it moves on. The harrier is quite a small raptor and no threat to an adult kereru. It feeds mostly on carrion and small animal prey (although no doubt given the opportunity, a harrier would take a squab from a nest). The adult kereru's response to these harrier visits seems excessive. However, the swamp harrier is a relative newcomer to New Zealand - having arrived only a few hundred years ago.

Swamp Harrier

What is fascinating is that 500 years ago or so these hillsides would have been the domain of a far larger predator that would have targeted kereru as a main source of prey. The Forbes' Harrier (Circus teauteensis ) known from fossil remains, was four times the size of our swamp harriers today. Of NZ's aerial predators only the Haast's Eagle was larger. Forbes' Harriers were formidable killers taking large prey even including small moa. They became extinct in the prehistoric period presumably as a result of human hunting although the introduction of pacific rats could have resulted in egg and chick loss.

Is it possible that todays kereru, which evolved for millennia alongside the Forbes Harrier have transferred their flight response to the smaller, but similar shaped, swamp harrier? Perhaps, deep in the kereru's DNA, the survival of the species over thousands or millions of years still drives the behavior of our birds today. 

What else that we witness in our forest is a vestige of an extraordinary lost past?

Forbes Harrier

Image from a painting by Paul Martinson in Extinct Birds of New Zealand by Alan Tennyson and Paul Martinson.

Summer 2018

This is my first blog since 2015. So much has happened up here in the forest in the past few years. Many of our discoveries and observations have been posted on the Mahakirau Facebook page, on the Mahakirau website or on Nature Watch. However, a number of people have asked that I continue to post on my blog as it does provide another (personal) record of what goes on in our fabulous piece of paradise. So where do I start?

Metrosideros fulgens

I am looking out from the house over the valley towards the east coast. The forest appears to be extremely healthy. Every shade of green, with subtle differences of colour, form and texture enabling the observant viewer to identify many of the more than fifty species of tree we have in our forest. This spring and summer have been excellent for all the flowering trees and climbers and the green on green has been punctuated by other splashes of colour. At the moment the scarlet of the climbing rata (Metrosideros fulgens) is spectacular and follows a fine and prolongued season for the magnificent emergent crimson northern rata (Metrosideros robusta).
From our bedroom we look into the canopy of one of the tall rata in the valley below. As it came into flower the resident tui became increasingly defensive and belligerent. Prolonged singing was punctuated by aerial chases after other tuis, bellbirds and silvereyes if they dared enter the canopy.
The tui's world has calmed down at the moment following a very good breeding season. We had a nest in the tawa (Beilschmiedia tawa) above the house but I never managed to work out how many young they successfully fledged although we regularly had young birds pestering their parents for food. Many species seem to have had a particularly good breeding season this year with bellbirds successfully raising numerous young and more than one brood. The young bellbird's incessant squeaking contact call takes on a 'dripping tap' dimension. Once you are aware of the call it drives you to distraction. Such constant calling might at first seem counter intuitive as it provides an obvious target for predators. However if you attempt to find the source of the call you soon realize what ventriloquists they are. Even when you can see the bird the call seems to come from everywhere.
Silvereye are another species that has had a good breeding season. Flocks of at least thirty birds have been feeding in the low canopy around the house often bringing fantail, grey warbler, tomtit and bellbird with them. Five finger berries, and the insects they attract, are a favourite target and at times the bushes have been alive with juvenile silvereye calling and vibrating their wings in anticipation of their parents providing food.

One of our resident moreporks

For the past few nights our family of morepork have been busy around the house. They have at least three young that have been flying in a somewhat ungainly fashion, landing on the ends of mamaku fronds which collapse under their weight so that they end up hanging upside down endeavoring to look nonchalant. The young morepork call is very un-owl-like. A sort of soft trill that is more insect like than bird (described in the literature as a gentle high-pitched cricket-like trill). They don't begin to sound like adult morepork until they are about five months old.
The forest this spring and summer has been a far cry from the silent bush of the past. I will cover our recent experiences of predator control and successes with our rare endemics in future blog posts.

Gecko central

Coromandel Striped Gecko 

The most exciting news since the start of summer has been the discovery of three geckos on the estate. Two of these, discovered and photographed by Sara Smerdon, were Coromandel Striped Gecko – possibly the rarest Gecko in the world. The species was discovered on the Coromandel at the end of the 1990s and only a handful has been seen since. We are awaiting further information from scientists and DoC experts but most or all previous records have been from the 309 road north to Moehau. Sara’s records may extend the known range of the species. This is a beautiful and quite large gecko. Both the individuals Sara photographed had previously dropped, and were regrowing, their tails. Reviewing photographs on the internet I see that this is also true of other individuals. It will be interesting to know if this is the case with all gecko species or if these geckos are particularly vulnerable to predation.

Second Coromandel Striped Gecko

The other Gecko was found and photographed by Kevin and Cynthia and looks like a forest gecko. These photographs have also been sent away for verification.

It is important to know that it is illegal to handle or keep in captivity any of the native lizards. All are especially vulnerable to predation by cats and rats. These gecko records further illustrate the incredible diversity of rare species that we live alongside at Mahakirau.

Around the house there have been a number of Copper and Blue Butterflies as well as visits from the occasional Red Admiral and Painted Lady. The lack of cicadas is noticeable and we have seen fewer puriri moths than usual. Apparently cicada numbers are low across the country. This is a consequence of what was going on five years ago when they would have started their life cycles.

In the hot dry January we have just enjoyed, the bush has been relatively quiet as far as birds are concerned. We have several families of silvereye, fantail, tomtit and bellbird in the bush around us and kingfisher have been noisy at times. A lone kaka flew over the house in mid January – but they seem to spend time at  more elevated parts of the estate, only occasionally visiting us at 300masl.  Two Black backed gulls flew over the estate in December – a surprisingly rare occurrence. Californian Quail appear to have had a bumper breeding season with several parties of more than twenty chicks. The number of well grown young suggests that stoat and weasel numbers must be low – a tribute to the pest control team.

Shining Cuckoo are still calling occasionally. At the end of December we had an interesting experience when about ten cuckoos spent an hour or more in the mature Tawa tree immediately beside the house - calling incessantly. They were very agitated displaying to each other with outstretched and quivering wings and tail. Every so often there would be wild chases through the tree canopy and at other times they could be seen feeding on caterpillars. After they flew from the tree I heard them continuing to call about 100 meters away. The next day a smaller number of birds returned to the Tawa and began calling again. According to the Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds these communal displays may involve up to a dozen birds although I have not seen more than six birds together before.

Forest Gecko

Finally, it was a good spring and summer for many of the flowering forest trees. Hinau and Rata had particularly impressive seasons and now white rata are flowering well.

Lancewood and diving petrel - November 2014

It has been a frustrating spring. Just when the weather appears to be improving there is another wintery blast from the far south. The few still warm days have been glorious but they do seem to have been few and far between.

This year we have had high pest numbers to contend with. Rat numbers were exceptionally high in our pre-control monitoring. This followed a major seed drop earlier in the year. In the past month or so several stoats, a weasel and two ferrets have been trapped. More rabbits have appeared on the un-forested parts of the estate and these may have attracted the ferrets. Our pest control contractor has been working on the possums and rats and I have recently seen young bellbird and tui, so some birds have successfully raised a first brood.

This has been an exceptional year for seeds and flowering in the forest. At present, Quintinia is looking impressive and white rata are in full flower. 

One of the white rata species Metrosideros perforata
which is currently flowering prolifically

A strange phenomenon has been the shedding of leaves by many Lancewoods – a common small tree throughout the estate. They had an impressive flowering and the flocks of kereru and tuis then targeted their clusters of berries. At first, I assumed the carpets of leaves below the trees to be collateral damage from the kereru and perhaps possums. However, many trees have now lost all their leaves. In the last couple of weeks some completely denuded trees have begun to put on new growth so I am hopeful that this may be a natural phenomenon and that many will recover.  Olearia rani  plants, that escaped the catastrophic dieback after its phenomenal flowering two years ago, are now looking reasonably healthy, so maybe these major diebacks are just a part of the forest ecology.

Fallen Lancewood leaves on the forest floor

Several people have commented how the bush seems to be less dense than it was. From our near ground human perspective the adjacent forest does seem to have opened up but I think that this is simply the forest moving towards maturity.

A magnificent Kauri just over the Waiparuparu Stream

So far this year I have completed sixty-four 5 minute bird counts within the estate. This is the only way of providing a direct comparison of the bird numbers year on year. Numbers of all the native species appear to be consistent with previous years. This year I first heard Shining Cuckoo on the estate on the 18^th September – nine days earlier than last year. As with last year a kiwi called near the house in late September. It is difficult to know whether this is a consequence of kiwis moving within the estate or simply reflects the warmer evenings and the fact that we spend more time on the decks. Sara and Rogier recorded Kaka on the upper estate most evenings for a period in spring.

The most exciting and unusual bird record on the estate was seen and photographed by Jude Hooson.  In misty conditions a Diving Petrel was attracted to the house lights at night. Jude was able to photograph it as it fluttered around on the deck. Unfortunately the mobile phone photograph at night through the ranch slider is not clear enough to reproduce here, but is just adequate for identification purposes! The Common Diving Petrel (kuaka) is a small seabird (20cm) which breeds off the NZ east coast including the Mercury Islands and spends most of its time in adjacent waters. It is the most aquatic of all petrels. It flies with a whirring flight close to the surface of the sea. Strangely, Jude said it appeared to be attracted to the moths fluttering against the window. This was probably a response to their movement not as a source of food. Diving Petrels feed mostly on small krill and copepods, swimming underwater using their wings and legs for propulsion. A fascinating record for the estate! It just shows that almost anything can turn up. It also reinforces the importance of taking photographs. Had Jude told me she had watched a Diving Petrel chasing moths on her deck 475metres above sea level I would have suggested she should be certified! With photographic evidence, Jude has made a most extraordinary ornithological record.

 

Diving Petrel (from 'Seabirds' by Peter Harrison)

First signs of spring 2014

Following a period of southerlies the wind has changed to the north and we now have low cloud and warm rain. The days are noticeably drawing out and forest growth is evident. Epiphytic Brachyglottis kirkii is flowering down in the Waiparuparu stream valley and is in bud near the house. On the 17^th August, within the estate, we found the first flowering native clematis of the year. In previous years flowering has occurred further down the 309 long before first flowering on the estate, which has been at the end of August or early September.  Beside our drive there is a single dark red tubular flower of the shrub Alseuosmia macrophylla. 

Again, flowering is earlier than last year. Judi has found a new species of fern for the estate, which on initial examination she thinks is – Polystichum richardii.

Alseuosmia macrophylla

The dawn chorus is now composed of both native and exotic songsters with tui, bellbird, tomtit, grey warbler and silvereye being joined by blackbird, song thrush, dunnock and chaffinch. In the years we have lived up here we have never seen the numbers of tui and kereru that are around the estate at the moment. Tuis are singing everywhere and in fine still weather there are almost constant aerial chases through the bush around the house.  I am not certain if these are territorial disputes or simply related to competition for food. I have seen flocks of more than twenty birds. As many as seven tuis at a time are apparently feeding on honeydew from sooty mould that covers the upper branches of a mature pukatea beside the drive. Elsewhere tuis are busy feeding on lancewood berries, which are prolific this year. In fine weather several tuis have been making aerial sallies after flying insects.

Numerous kereru have been feeding in the taraires, which is good for forest sustainability, as the big fat purple berries need to pass through the pigeon’s digestive system if they are to germinate. Harriers have been displaying high above the forest. When they fly low over the bush they spook the kereru and this is a good opportunity to estimate numbers. Although we have seen a flock of more than twenty birds and groups of half a dozen are common, these numbers pale in comparison to a flock of nearly 200 birds in the Whenuakite kiwi management area near Tairua.

In other bird news, swallows have returned to hawk around the house and three were present yesterday. This morning I had to release a starling from the fireplace. Starlings are only seen occasionally on the estate so this bird must have been prospecting for nest sites and fell down the chimney. The only other bird that has done this was a swallow. They don’t seem to be any the worse for their experience! A lone kaka has been flying over the estate in the last few days and today two spur-winged plovers were mobbing a harrier over the grass paddock. Previously, I have heard plovers calling at night over the estate (on the acoustic kiwi call recordings) but they are rarely around during daytime. It will be interesting to see if they stay and attempt to breed.

Next month I will begin the fifth year of 5 minute bird counts through the estate. These give a direct comparison of bird numbers year by year. It will be fascinating to see if the high winter counts of native species is reflected in the spring survey.

Kereru flocks

Today has been another glorious autumnal day – still, mild and sunny. With the exception of a week or so of cold and wet weather the summer feels like it has gone on and on.

Friends who visited at the weekend marveled at the wealth of bird life on the estate. Fantails, grey warblers, silvereye, tomtit, bellbirds and tuis surrounded us. It is so easy to forget how silent some forests have become. Our friends are seasoned trampers so it was an interesting observation.

For the first time since we have been living up here we have seen flocks of Kereru on the estate. Yesterday a flock of about twenty birds flew down the picnic area valley landing in a rata above the waterfall. It looked as if some of the birds at least were then feeding in the canopy of a miro. Four days ago I saw a flock of a dozen or so kereru near the entrance to lot 2 so these may be the same birds. Through the telescope, I watched about a dozen birds, several feeding on lancewood berries. These birds may have come from within the estate or more likely from elsewhere, as our resident birds were still around. Also the flocking birds were more wary than our regulars, which are very trusting.

I have also noted a number of small groups of tui flying over the bush. One flock of ten birds was the largest group that I have seen since being up here. Tuis had been very quiet during much of April but in the past fortnight they have reappeared. Both tuis and bellbirds are now singing well.

At times the bush is seething with flocks of many tens of silvereyes and the sound of their high-pitched calls can be quite deafening in the early morning. Every so often a bird will burst into song. Several tomtits have been calling and in the last few days I have heard the occasional singing.

In the evening light I was scanning the bush with binoculars. Pairs of fantails were everywhere, presumably hunting for insects flying just above the canopy. The sun was catching their pale fan tails and undersides as they pirouetted above the trees. These dancing pairs were visible all down the valley.  They do appear to have had a good breeding season.

Of the exotic species on the estate, song thrushes are singing strongly.  They are shy birds here and rarely seen in the open. It is interesting how wary most of the introduced species are, in comparison with many of the natives. Pheasant, rosellas, greenfinch, blackbirds and thrushes all fly as soon as a person appears whereas the native species can be extremely confiding.  It is easy to see how devastating to birdlife the introduction of predators such as rats and stoats must have been.

Thankfully, with slightly cooler nights, wasp numbers have reduced to normal levels. There is still some cricket activity heard at night but the only insect of note was another Painted Lady butterfly - in the first week of April.

Judi has recorded a single plant of the small tree ‘Raukawa’, Pseudopanax edgerleyi, a new species for the estate.

wasps,wasps,wasps

We are still enjoying superb summer weather – today is warm and still. The mid March cyclone was not as bad as predicted. We were overseas at the time but very little damage was evident on our return and by all accounts we missed the worst of it as it tracked down the west coast. The present warm weather has resulted in very high wasp numbers through parts of the estate. Where grass has been cut or fresh soil exposed the ground is covered with wasps. They are also very busy around flowering lancewood and climbing rata.

We are currently enjoying a wonderful chorus of bellbirds. It is surprising how one week one species is very active and visible and the next a different species takes its place. Earlier this month the tuis were everywhere and bellbirds were few and far between. In the past few days tui have been flying high over the estate and a few have started singing again but in the early new year they were very active defending ‘their’ rata trees. Tomtits, which have been largely invisible recently, have also begun to sing again. 

One thing you learn when living in the bush is that the apparent absence of a species does not mean it is not present. The smaller birds in particular can be difficult to find when nesting and during the post-breeding period. Fruiting and flowering trees and hatching insects also result in birds moving to feed in different areas. Having not seen or heard a shining cuckoo for some time at the start of the year an adult then appeared at the house. Later, two juvenile birds were calling endlessly to their adopted grey warbler parents. 

The local press has recently published a letter suggesting the DoC 1080 drop has killed all the birds around here. Our experience on the estate (we are adjacent to the 1080 drop zone) is very different. All the regular bush birds are in good numbers and are probably as numerous as we have ever seen them. Harrier numbers may be down but again there are plenty of birds around. There has been no noticeable drop in morepork numbers, which are very high. 

A family of kingfisher had at least three young near the picnic area and they are surprisingly tame around the house. There are plenty of kereru and recently I have seen the occasional display dive. So far this year I have only seen one kaka flying over the estate.

We completed the analysis of the kiwi monitoring recordings and have to report that only one kiwi – a male – was confirmed on the estate. There is still a possibility that other birds are present, but it certainly confirms that numbers are extremely low. It is probably this one bird that has been heard at various locations within the central estate. Sadly the female ‘309’ kiwi I mentioned in my last blog post died of its injuries. Once again it reinforces the importance of keeping dogs out of the estate. 

There are never many butterflies in the forest but this summer I have recorded copper, blue and Helm’s butterflies and on 28^th March there was a painted lady near the house. I recorded this species here in mid march 2012. This could have been a windblown arrival from Australia or maybe from a population that has established locally. There is never a shortage of cabbage whites especially around the vegetable garden!

Metrosideros fulgens - Climbing Rata

We are enjoying a period of stella weather with warm, still, sunny days and the occasional afternoon thunderstorm to add a bit of drama. The last significant rain was at the start of December when we had 90mm in one night. The gales and cold of late September are a distant memory.

Early this morning I stood on the terrace for a few minutes and enjoyed the number of birds around. A flock of 30 or so silvereye was working through the bushes while fantails and grey warblers were very active. Bellbirds were busy and several young birds were calling from the denser areas of bush. Tui were very active flying between the tall rata. They are aggressively protecting their territories from all sorts of other bird species as well as their own kind. Every so often they make hair-raising chases through the vegetation after birds that have transgressed in some way. Competition with bellbird is understandable but it is difficult to understand why song thrush should be given a hard time! Many chases seem to involve silvereyes and in one, a silvereye attempted to escape by flying into the house, but the tui hurtled after it through the dining area and back out through the sliding doors! Bruno and Barbara have many tui visiting their flax and we have noted how tame the birds are around both houses. In November, when small shiny green beetles were coming out of the ground on the terrace, tuis were hoping around at our feet and noisily flying around our heads as they picked off beetles that took to the air. We have never seen so many tui on the estate. This is also true of the kereru. At times they seem to be in every rata and the valley below the house has been full of birds displaying.

Another species that may be more numerous than in previous years is shining cuckoo. Birds have been singing and calling across the estate since they first arrived up here on 27^th September. At times as many as half a dozen can be heard from the house and their numbers may reflect the high population of grey warbler.  Californian quail are frequent throughout the estate and there have been several family parties near the picnic area and a family with twelve tiny bundles of fluff this morning near lot 21. The lack of stoats should give them a better chance. The same is true with the pheasants. There are several cock pheasants crowing most days and a hen pheasant with a brood of five offspring are at the picnic area.

Tomtits are around, but are a lot less vocal than during September and November. During spring we had never seen and heard so many on the estate.  That’s not the case with kotare (kingfisher). There seem to be fewer than in previous years although they may become more evident now that the cicadas have started.

Morepork numbers must be very high. On a still night as many as a dozen birds can be heard from the house. We found the telltale evidence that one has been perching on the deck balustrade - decapitating huhu beetles and dismembering pururi moths! 

 

Huhu beetle

Finally on the bird front, a fox terrier caught a kiwi somewhere on the 309. We are awaiting further information. The bird was badly injured but has so far survived the attack. It was taken to Auckland Zoo for treatment. It is a salutary reminder that dogs and kiwis do not mix.

The most exciting insect news in the past few months has been several helm’s butterflies. We had one around the house for a few days at the end of November and I have seen others further north on the estate. These are rare endemics.  I discussed their significance in an earlier blog posting.

Several trees and shrubs have been flowering well including Hinau, Quintinia, manuka, rewa rewa and tawari. Pigeonwood berries are prolific and many are lying on the forest floor. This suggests that rodent numbers are low following pest control efforts 

this spring.

Low rat, mice and possum numbers should allow impressive bush growth particularly if the warm weather continues.

 

Tawari  Ixerba brexioides

  

Clematis paniculata

Aleuosmia macrophylla

Spring growth on Fivefinger

The forest is beginning to look beautifully fresh as most plants are now putting on new growth.  When the weather is warm and the rain keeps coming growth is phenomenal.
Olearia rani, common throughout much of the estate, had no flowering this year. Last year the bush was white with their flowers but I have only seen one flower cluster this year! The white flowers of manuka and clematis are beginning to appear and Judi noticed the first hooded orchids out on the waterfall path but it looks like it is a later and less spectacular spring than last year. Alseuosmia macrophylla (sorry no common name) which we think is relatively uncommon shrub on the estate, is flowering at the moment. It has spectacular dark crimson tubular flowers, like a large fuschia, with feathered petals. Several of the commoner but less spectacular shrubs such as coprosma are also flowering and clouds of pollen come off the plants when you brush against them.
The highlight of the past few weeks for me was a male kiwi calling just below the house. In the hour I was listening (3-4am) he called three times - each time a series of more than twenty whistles. The first time he called I thought I was dreaming that I was still listening to the calls on the computer! I had hoped to have completed the analysis by now but I have only worked through six of the ten sets of recordings so far. It is a very slow and tedious process. I have picked up male kiwi calling at two of the sites, but no females - which is a disappointing result so far. It has been good to hear several kaka in different parts of the estate. These no doubt are visitors from the Manaia population. On a positive note the recordings do confirm that we have a very healthy population of morepork and weta. Every site has recorded morepork calling most evenings and often multiple birds can be heard. Weta can be heard rasping away at every site. Only another 500 hours of recordings to work through!!
I see that people elsewhere in the North Island have started recording the first arrivals of shining cuckoo so we are keeping our ears open. Last year the Mahakirau birds arrived well after birds elsewhere in the country. I wonder if they fly into Northland and then make their way directly south bypassing the Coromandel or if early arrivals stay near the coast with later birds heading up into the ranges.
The rather miserable windy and cool weather we have had recently seems to have reduced the birdsong and other spring activity. However, whenever it is still and sunny all the bush birds appear. Yesterday the first kingfisher for a while was calling monotonously below the house. Tomtit remain very active with several singing birds around the house. At Chris and Marilyn's we watched a pair together - possibly prospecting for nest sites. At one point the male lay motionless on the open ground, like a reclining cat! We were just beginning to wonder if he was hurt when the female flew down to join him and they made off together.
Kereru and tui are both into their spectacular display flights. The kereru seem to delight in their swoop and stall flights while the tuis hurtle towards the ground from a great height and it is difficult to imagine that they don't get some sort of avian adrenaline rush!

winter winds

Earlier in the winter Jude and I had a special time in Sri Lanka and Thailand. We visited several areas of forest and it is always fascinating to make comparisons with Mahakirau. The Kaeng Krachan National Park on the Thai/Myanmar border was spectacular. Numerous mammal species including gibbons and other primates and in a five day trip we recorded nearly 200 species of bird including many beautiful and spectacular forest dwellers such as hornbills. It is easy to be despondent about our lack of diversity in NZ but at least we don't have mosquitos, leeches and fiery red ants! Also we don't have to endure 35 degrees with near 100% humidity!
Returning to winter from those temperatures takes a bit of adjustment but we have been lucky with the weather. We have enjoyed some glorious spring like days although we now have rain and wind as a subtropical storm has arrived from the north. However, it is still quite warm with temperatures in the mid teens. Looking down the valley it is raining hard at the coast but we just have a very light drizzle here at the moment, having had 43mm of rain yesterday.
The birds vanish when the wind is so strong but until yesterday they had been behaving as if spring had arrived with tui courting hard and tomtit, bellbird, grey warbler and fantail all singing strongly.  In the fine weather before the storm harriers were displaying above the forest and the first swallow that I have seen for a while was singing while flying high above  the house. There are still plenty of fantail around. In the gale they were keeping very low, out of the wind, flying just above the ground catching insects blown out of the bushes.
Whilst the bush is generally looking healthy, several more olearia plants have died and others look very sick. It would be good to know if this is associated with the phenomenal flowering last year. Kereru have demolished the Kowhai leaves on the trees planted by our drive. Perhaps they are eco-purists and recognize that kowhai are not native to the bush here (having been brought up from Taupo to feed the tui)!  In any event it will be interesting to see if the trees can recover from the attack.
With the onset of weather less conducive to being outside, Jude and I have begun the long process of listening to the 1,200 hours of bio-acoustic (kiwi) recordings made in June throughout the estate. We have only been through two of the ten sites so far but they have certainly supported the view that we have a very good Morepork population. We have also picked up Kaka and Spur winged plover calling. So far no kiwi. I will report on the final analysis in my next posting.

Early winter

The long dry spell is definitely over although it is still warm when the sun is out. The forest now looks very lush and surprisingly the climbing rata is still flowering. Recently, we have woken to beautiful sunrises looking down onto low cloud in the valley and out to the coast. Last week we had two of the best days of the year – absolutely still, warm and cloudless. Today there is torrential rain – never a dull moment!

Natural history highlights in the past two months include the discovery of five Hochstetter’s Frogs in a 50 metre stretch of one stream. If you lift stones to look for frogs you need to be very careful not to squash them. You also need good eyes as young ones are very very small (less than 1cm) and cryptically coloured.  It would be good to have a better understanding of the distribution of both frog species as there is very conflicting information as to where they may occur within the estate. For example do Archeys Frogs only occur in higher parts of the estate or are they found across all elevations? If you find frogs please record location and date. If you can take photos, please do, as identifying the species is not easy.

On the bird front Kaka have been reported within the estate, presumably feeding on the Coprosma or other fruits. Kiwis have been heard by at least six owners at a number of locations through the central part of the estate. At present it is not clear how many birds may be involved. Probably, there are at least two male birds moving around within their territories. When densities are very low, territories may cover large areas.  Now is a very good time of the year to listen for them. Red Admiral Ecology has been contracted to carry out a call survey using bio-acoustic recorders placed through the estate. These continuously record for at least eight nights. The memory cards are then analysed using a specialized software package. This is time consuming and to keep costs down we will look at being trained to do this ourselves.

There are not a lot of changes on the bird front since my last post. Plenty of bellbirds calling and occasionally bursting into song but tuis are very quiet. They are still on the estate but few are singing. Kereru are also keeping a low profile. That is not the case with tomtits and fantails. They are singing strongly throughout the estate. We have several birds around the house, which has not been the case in previous years, so that is a very good sign. Silvereyes are everywhere and numerous flocks come to feed on the five-fingers and other shrubs.

Re-seeding of the cleared paddock area on lot 9 brought in large numbers of chaffinch, greenfinch, goldfinch and yellowhammer. They were around for a couple of weeks until they ran out of grass seed. This week there were just two yellowhammers left.

There are several small groups of rosella and the occasional kingfisher around to add colour to the bush and small coveys of californian quail often fly up from the road near the picnic area when we drive through.

We are looking forward to winter on the estate and hope to be able to report positive news about kiwi numbers. If you hear or see any please record date, time and location.

Rain at last

This Hochstetter's frog was half the size of a little fingernail

It took John coming up to Mahakirau to camp out at lot 9 to really break the drought (more than 150mm in 24 hours)! This followed 14 weeks during which we had little more than 100mm. Some shrubs have suffered quite badly in the prolonged dry spell and we have lost several Olearia plants after their phenomenal flowering earlier this summer.
At the moment there are numerous climbing rata still flowering which are proving very attractive to Bellbird. It has been a fantastic period for bellbird song. At times they have been deafening around the house and are still putting on a show now. Tui are not so apparent as earlier in the year when they seemed to be everywhere but they are first-up in the dawn chorus and numbers suggest that they have also had a good breeding season. Kereru are less apparent than earlier in the summer when they were very visible. Often four or five would be in the trees behind the house. It is difficult to gauge whether they have left the estate or are just keeping a low profile.
All of the commoner bush birds have been very active over the warm, still period. Silvereye are currently in large flocks of more than twenty birds and at times the forest has been teeming with them. Fantail and Grey Warbler have also been very evident whereas recently I have only seen or heard the occasional Tomtit and Kingfisher - but they are around. Individual Kaka have flown over the estate and I have heard them at night - presumably returning to the Manaia. We saw a flock of more than six birds in the sanctuary during March. Morepork numbers seem to be high and on one still, warm night I believe that I could hear from the house more than a dozen different birds.
A highlight of the past two months has been male kiwi calling below Bruno and Barbara's and near the estate road at Sebastian and Karen's. Hopefully, we will record female kiwi this winter.

Tim and Jude found this Forest Gecko (Hoplodactylus granulatus) at their house - as far as I know the first record on the estate for many years. They grow up to 17cms and live in holes in tree trunks and under bark. Their cryptic colouring makes them very difficult to see in the bush. Rats love them so it would be fantastic to think that the pest control programme could help this species to flourish on the estate.
On the butterfly front I have recorded a few Monarch and Blues and a single Red Admiral. The commonest butterfly on the estate is the White. There have been two different species of dragonfly around the house.
Finally, the local newspaper reported the discovery of a flowering wood rose (Dactylanthus taylorii) somewhere on the peninsula. It is New Zealand's only totally parasitic flowering plant and lives on the roots of hardwoods such as mahoe, lancewood and fivefinger - all of which are common on the estate. It flowers between January and May and is pollinated by the short-tailed bat. This was only the second record in one hundred years. Nonetheless we will keep looking. You never know...

Summer 2013

The long hot dry summer continues with temperatures in the mid 20s most days. Apart from a fall of about 50mm in early February there has been very little rain this year and none is forecast for the next week.The bush is getting extremely dry and whenever the wind blows there is noticeable leaf fall. 

On the plant front there is a good flowering of scarlet climbing rata and nikau palms. The easter orchid (raupeka) has begun to flower and the scent wafts through the bush. Judi describes the perfume as sandalwood and honey. Judi has also discovered another location for the rare King Fern which is very exciting. Apparently pigs (and plant collectors) love it which may account for its serious decline across the country - and its presence on the estate is another reason that it is important to control pig numbers - and human access. 

Butterflies have been few and far between - apart from the ubiquitous whites. I have only seen one monarch, a couple of coppers and blues. Back in January one more Helms Butterfly to add to the pre Christmas records. We have had plenty of cave and bush wetas around the house and glow worms have put on a fine show in all the usual locations.

We have seen no frogs although we try to avoid disturbing likely areas. At night we have seen kokopu in the picnic area swimming hole.

Bush birds appear to have had a good season and there are many young bellbirds and tui around. Silvereye numbers are high with small flocks constantly calling. Fantail numbers seem to be up on previous years, with many young birds around. Grey warbler are singing strongly but I have not seen many tomtit recently and shining cuckoo have either left or are silent. Kingfisher are still around but they are very quiet. There are plenty of Morepork calling at night and they will always come to the house when the flood lights are on and puriri moths are around. In January we saw and heard a kaka fly past a full moon calling and recently a night flying long tailed cuckoo flew over the house calling.

During the heavy rain and low cloud on February 4th we had the lights on enjoying the morepork when a very pale bird flew along the front of the house and crashed into the shrubs above the deck. It flapped around long enough for me to grab the binoculars and see that it was a species of petrel. Presumably it was disorientated by the wild weather and very poor visibility. Size, white underside, pale panel on the upper primaries, pale rounded head with dark smudge around the eye and short bill suggest it was probably a black-winged petrel (Pterodroma nigripennis). Unfortunately, I was unable to get a really clear view to confirm the identification. It would be fantastic to think that the bird was prospecting for mainland breeding sites as I understand that they have been seen at night over headlands along the mainland coast but no doubt that is drawing a very long bow and the poor bird was probably just lost.

At the risk of tempting providence, enough water to fill the tanks would be welcome!

 I'm sitting here with kereru feeding on Miro berries and a Tui defending 'his' flowering Rata outside the window. At least three pigeons are in the Miro but there may be more the way the upper branches are swaying. It looks like a troupe of monkeys are at work!

Despite several aborted attempts at posting a spring and then early summer blog this will be my first blog for several months. Blogspot changed their set up which made it frustratingly difficult to operate using dial-up, but now I think I have mastered it and we are using 3G so I hope to blog more frequently in future.

This has been a fabulous year for forest flowering. We returned from New York to hillsides covered in white. The Olearia was spectacular. A supporting cast of native clematis, epiphytic brachiglotis and manuka resulted in the bush looking as if there had been a heavy snowfall.

 














The flowering theme has continued, first with coastal Pohutakawa (not found on the estate) and currently with a spectacular display of Rata. Different trees have been flowering for more than seven weeks.

On the bird front it appears to have been a good season. Highlights have been the occasional Kaka, a gathering of half a dozen extremely noisy Shining Cuckoo in a Totara by the house, a male Kiwi calling behind the house, a gathering of 30 or so Swallows at Bruno and Barbara's, and very healthy numbers of Tui, Bellbird, Kingfisher, Tomtit, Fantail, Grey warbler etc. Morepork have continued to put on a show on the deck at night and I have tried experimenting with my Iphone taking photos through the telescope.

There have been few butterflies around. However, a highlight has been a number of Helm's butterflies - at least seven on the estate and one in the Manaia sanctuary.

Does anyone know what species this is?