Going “Down Under” (NZ #6)
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Thermals and Shorebirds — January 22, 2012
Orakei Korako Thermal Park
New Zealand is one of the best thermal areas in the world (as evidenced by the many dormant and semi-dormant volcanoes) so we decided to spend part of a day exploring an area 45 minutes south of Rotorua known as “The Hidden Valley.” Unfortunately we did not have the best weather as we boarded a small boat that would take us across Lake Ohakuri to the area of hot springs and geysers. it drizzled most of the time we were there but we made the best of it.
Crossing Lake Ohakuri
The photos below give you an idea of the beauty of this area which would have been even more spectacular and colorful had there been some sunshine.
The Firth of Thames and Miranda
After our morning exploring the thermal areas, we headed north in the direction of the Firth of Thames, a bay southwest of Auckland. Our destination was Miranda, a well-known shorebird spot where we hoped to see some of New Zealand’s endemic and migratory shorebirds. The sun even came out while we were there!
Miranda Beach Sign
The Path to the Blind
Our timing was perfect as the tide was at the best level for shorebird viewing. Not only that, four friendly and informative birders were also there and let us view birds through their scopes, sharing a lot of information about the area and its birds with us.
Four Kiwis and Me at Miranda
The highlight here was the endemic Wrybill, a bird I’d been looking forward to seeing. Breeding along rocky riverbeds on South Island, the majority of Wrybills can be found from November through February on North Island at the Firth of Thames, most of them at Miranda. Lucky us!
This is the only bird in the world to have a bill that curves to one side. This adaptation allows the birds to dislodge rocks as they probe for invertebrates in the rocky riverbeds of their breeding grounds. After they arrive at the North Island estuaries, they feed by sweeping their bill through the soft tidal mud.
Wrybill (Anarynchus frontalis)
Got Something!
We also enjoyed the Pied Stilts, this one being an immature bird.
Pied Stilt (Himantopus leucocephalus)
Another “life bird” for us here was the Bar-tailed Godwit, also using the Firth of Thames as a wintering ground. Bar-tailed Godwits are a wide-spread species, breeding in Arctic regions of the Old World and Alaska. It has recently been determined that the Bar-tailed Godwit makes the longest known non-stop flight of any migratory bird, flying from New Zealand to the Yellow Sea, a distance of over 6000 miles in just 9 days!
A muddy Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica)
We only had a few hours to enjoy the birds this afternoon. We knew we couldn’t leave Miranda without returning the next morning so more Miranda birds to follow in the next post.
The perfect ending to a day that started out with rain:
Rainbow at Miranda Beach
Going “Down Under” (NZ #5)
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Central North Island — January 21, 2012
After spending the night at the beautiful Chateau Tongariro in Tongariro National Park, a World Heritage Site, we birded around the hotel grounds for a short while in the morning before heading up to the Mt. Ruapehu volcano.
Chateau Tongariro
Among the birds we saw on the lawns of the hotel grounds were New Zealand Pipits (a subspecies of the Australasian Pipit) and Australasian Magpies.
New Zealand Pipit (Anthus novaeseelandiae ssp. novaeseelandiae)
Australasian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen)
This area probably would have been our best opportunity to view a kiwi in the wild, but unfortunately it rained the afternoon of our arrival and through the night. Fortunately it was sunny and warm the next morning which allowed us to explore the area in pleasant weather.
Chateau Tongariro is built on the north slope of North Island’s largest and potentially active volcano, Mt. Ruapehu. The most recent eruption was in 2007 with almost yearly warnings since then. There are two ski areas on the rugged slopes of the volcano and we drove up to the Wakapapa (love those Maori words!) ski lift in the morning and rode the lift to the top. Despite being the middle of summer, there were still some patches of snow.
Mt. Ruapehu
Mt. Ruapehu Ski Lift
Barren Slopes of Mt. Ruapehu
Looking at Mt. Ngauruhoe
Driving back down the slope of the volcano, we made a few roadside stops and we began to see more vegetation including some beautiful alpine plants.
Parahebe (Parahebe hookeriana)
Mountain Daisy (Celmisia spectabilis)
Beautiful leaves of the small shrub, Brachyglottis bidwillii
As we drove to our next destination, Rotorua, we enjoyed more views of the volcanoes. The large flowering plants growing in the foreground of this photo are New Zealand Flax.
Along the way we made a stop at Lake Rotoaria.
Lake Rotoaria, Tongariro National Park
As we approached the lake, it was obvious that there were a lot of waterfowl on the water, most of which turned out to be Black Swans. More swans than we thought we’d ever see in one place!
Black Swans (Cygnus atratus)
Scattered among the swans and fewer in number were our old friends, Canada Geese. Yes, they’re here too.
Canada Geese (Branta canadensis)
We also saw the endemic New Zealand Scaup.
New Zealand Scaup (Aythya novaeseelandiae)
But the highlight was the swans.
Black Swans (Cygnus atratus)
Anticipation
Black Swans (Cygnus atratus)
Along the lake shore were several beautiful (non-native) butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii), seemingly identical to the plant we grow in the States to attract butterflies. Despite being the middle of summer, there was not a single butterfly on these bushes which was puzzling. As it turned out, we saw very few butterfly species while in New Zealand where insect diversity is probably fairly low.
Butterfly Bush, Lake Rotoaria, Tongarario National Park
Arriving in Rotorua in the late afternoon we checked into our hotel on the shores of Lake Rotorua and made plans for our visit to the thermal areas the next day.
Published by Arlene Ripley on April 12th, 2012 Tagged Birds, Nature, New Zealand, Wanderings | 1 Comment »Going “Down Under” (NZ #4)
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Waitomo Glowworm Caves — North Island, 1/20/2012
Heading southwest from Otohoranga, our next destination was the small town of Waitomo where we stayed in a very comfortable B&B, Waitomo Caves Guest Lodge. Waitomo is known for its “glow worm caves” so we thought we’d sign up for a tour. We had a few hours to kill in the morning so we drove to the nearby Rurakuri Scenic Reserve as suggested to us by the B&B owners. Here we found a boardwalk trail alongside a beautiful river with lush vegetation.
Rurakuri Scenic Reserve, Waitomo
We didn’t see many birds on our walk which was a bit disappointing, and those we did see were impossible to photograph due to the dense cover. However, one very large and beautiful endemic pigeon did cooperate.
New Zealand Pigeon (Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae)
Our cave tour began with a drive through beautiful, pastoral countryside which was dotted with wildflowers. We then left the van and hiked downhill to the Mangawhitikau Cave entrance.
Typical Rural New Zealand Scene
Hike to Waitomo Caves
The entrance to the cave gave no clue to what we would see inside.
Cave Entrance
As our eyes adjusted to the darkness, we began to see what looked like a million stars shining in a dark sky. What we were really seeing were the “glowworms” which are really not what we know as glowworms (the larvae of fireflies which are actually beetles) but the larvae of a fungus gnat (Arachnocampa luminosa) which occur only in New Zealand.
After a short walk, we got on some rafts (a river runs through the cave) and drifted in the darkness enjoying the wondrous glow all around us. Because photography was impossible inside the cave, some of the photos below have been provided by the tour company, Spellbound.
Glowworms on Cave Walls
Drifting Along the River
So what were we looking at? When we turned a light on we were able to see the small worm-like larvae on the cave walls. In the photo below, you can see three of the fungus gnat larvae and an opportunistic spider. You can also make out some longitudinal threads hanging from the rock. The larvae reach a final length of about 1.5″ before they pupate and become adult gnats which are about the size of a mosquito. The larval skin is transparent which allows light (a chemical reaction called “bioluminescence”) to shine through. The larvae create a series of tubes in which they live and suspend from these tubes “fishing lines” — silken threads which contain globules of sticky mucous. Unsuspecting prey are attracted to the light and subsequently get caught in the mucous globules. The vibration of the “fishing line” alerts the larva and it “reels” in the line by consuming the silken thread and the prey it holds.
Spider and Fungus Gnat Larvae
“Fishing Lines” in the Dark
“Fishing Lines” in the Light
Very ingenious indeed! Obviously a very dark place is necessary for this scheme to work so caves are the ideal sites for the gnats.
We thoroughly enjoyed our day in the caves of Waitomo.
Next destination: Volcano country.
Published by Arlene Ripley on March 31st, 2012 Tagged Birds, Insects, Nature, New Zealand, Wanderings | 1 Comment »Going “Down Under” (NZ #3)
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January 19, 2012 – North Island (continued)
Otorohanga Kiwi House and Native Bird Park provided not only the opportunity to see live Kiwis but it also gave us the opportunity to see some of New Zealand’s native birds that we may or may not see on our travels.
Some of the wetland areas were open to the outside enabling wild birds to enter the park. Other areas held captive birds in cages such as the Little Owl introduced from Germany in the early 1900s, the well-camouflaged Brown Quail introduced from Australia and the endemic New Zealand Falcon.
Little Owl (Athene noctua)
Brown Quail (Coturnix ypsilophora)
New Zealand Falcon (Falco novaseelandiae)
We enjoyed the close viewing of the New Zealand Kingfisher, especially at feeding time.
New Zealand Kingfisher (Halcyon sanctus vagrans)
Some of the waterfowl seen in the park were Australian Shoveler, Gray Teal and Pacific Black Duck.
Australian Shoveler (Anas rynchotis)
Gray Teal (Anas gracilis)
Pacific Black (Gray) Duck (Anas superciliosa)
Pure Pacific Black Ducks (called Gray Duck in New Zealand) have become quite uncommon in New Zealand as they have liberally hybridized with introduced Mallards. The duck in the photo above shows most of the features of a Pacific Black Duck except for the leg color which should be grayish.
Wandering around the grounds was a large member of the Rail Family — the North Island Weka or Bush Hen (Gallirallus australis greyi). This uncommon bird was once abundant but being both flightless and a ground-nester is vulnerable to dogs, cats, ferrets and stoats. Some are being introduced onto predator-free islands to help bolster the population. We found the Wekas to be quite tame and would often come so close that it was difficult to get the whole bird in the photo.
Weka (Galliralus australis)
Rotary Park
Just across the way from the Kiwi House we found a beautiful park that had been planted with our native Redwood trees, Sequoia sempervirens. We would later discover that not only does this species do well in New Zealand but it has become a popular parkland tree.
Entrance to Rotary Park
Rotary Park
Common in the park were the native Gray Warbler (Gerygone cinerea), Gray Fantail (Rhipidura albiscapa), and introduced Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis), Silver-eye (Zosterpos lateralis), Blackbird (Turdus merula) and Song Thrush.
Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)