 This blue-eyed baby is recovering well. Hello friends and family Slowly we are emerging from the dark days of chick death and able to enjoy the monitoring rounds as the chicks regain their health.  The Manuka are loving the spring weather After several online sessions with Dan, I was able to submit our application for the DOC community fund on Monday night to free up the rest of the week for other things.  The Oyster-catchers have 3 eggs The team came out on Tuesday morning and we split up to do the rounds to keep the number of people at the nests small. The threatening rain held off, so it was a pleasure to be outside. I saw my first seal pup of the season.  An ambitious, Red-billed gull with 4 eggs On Wednesday, when I checked the reserves, I saw a Black-backed Gull having a fit on the rocks. It had attracted the attention of other gulls. I stayed well clear and when I went back to check, the tide had come in and there was nothing there. On Thursday we welcomed Max, Holly and Chelsea from the Council. We already had Debbie from BBC wildlife magazine, so there was 13 of us. We split into 3 groups and went off to each reserve to check Black-backed Gull health and of course, the penguins!  parental protection By then the seal pup had friends. I joined the team at the Tavern for tea to farewell the 2 American volunteers.  No chicks mean free time On Friday and yesterday, the sun came out. With only a light breeze, the weather is glorious. Welcome to summer. Have a great week Rosalie   The 'A' team Hello friends and family, The team is soldiering on, 5 or 6 each day. Two go down to the Wildlife hospital and the rest do the rounds here. On Monday morning, we found 2 dead chicks. Both were recently returned from the wildlife hospital and over 2 weeks old.  the crazy Sealion This week, we have seen a male Sealion kill three female seals on the beach, by crushing them. The Red billed gull chicks are hatching, and the Oystercatchers have settled on their eggs.  Great camouflage! The temperatures have dropped, the wind has come up and the mornings are cold again. This is good for killing mosquitoes and for walking up hills, but I do prefer the sunshine.  One of the few nests with 2 chicks The penguin chicks continue to die. 10 of our chicks will not be able to return to the nest as they are very sick and will not recover quickly. They are in the hospital in the meantime.  The plants are loving life this spring The Pohutukawa trees are blooming early because of the spring rain. Have a great week! Rosalie  our first chick home is growing fast Hello friends and family It had to happen, on Monday we had our first chick death. A pipping egg was predated at the nest of the new parents down the hill here. We put out a trap straight away. Then on Tuesday, a chick was dead in nest K4. This is a pattern that we have seen before – everything is great until it’s not.  still hungry Wednesday was my day for round 4 of surgery to my face. Elaine came down to Dunedin and went shopping while I waited and eventually, at about 3pm, I was ready to come home. No chicks to pick up again on Thursday, so Robbie and I did the rounds while the rest of the team had a day off.  very protective parent On Friday, Tobi and I went down to the Wildlife hospital to take down 2 chicks and while we were on the road, the team found one of the previously returned chicks was gasping. I met Jan halfway and returned it to the Wildlife hospital.  midnight snack By this time, both us and the penguins sitting on dummy eggs were getting stressed by the low number of chicks returning from the hospital. This was put to rights a little, when 9 came back on Saturday. Eight of these chicks will need daily ointment for a while, but it is a relief all round to have them back.  2 fluffy bums Today there is one chick to pick up from the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital and it will go to the Bluffs. We have 2 new volunteers joining the team so it will be a busy day. Have a great week! Rosalie  Chick O2a, our first returned chick. Hello friends and family The focus this week is on carrying the tiny chicks to Dunedin safely. On Monday we took 7 chicks down to Dunedin. By Friday, we had taken down 41 chicks, and the first one came home. On the biggest day, we had 12 go down, which required 3 people to take them.  The warm, damp weather is growing all sorts of fungus Back home, we are doing the rounds daily, to check which chicks are pipping and hatching. The weather has been variable, but we have stayed mostly dry. Now, with chicks coming home, we check that they are staying healthy and are putting on weight.  Keepers bay has eroded right along the front, losing about 1m into the sea Today, Elaine and I are going down to Dunedin with up to 11 chicks and bringing home 2. Katie has her last day with us before heading north. Thank you, Katie, for your help.  The native irises are blooming along the path In the meantime, a possum had moved into the garage and threw stuff that I had forgotten that I had, all over the place! I have planted the spuds, carrots and only have beetroot and beans left to plant. Have a great week! Rosalie  A tiny penguin ready for its first road trip. Hello friends and family Well, the season is now under way. On Tuesday we found our first pipping eggs and on Thursday we took our first chick down to the wildlife hospital to protect it from the Gyrovirus.  Bruno, at DWH, hanging out with a gull, on his first birthday Thursday was the day we picked up the rental car, and last year, as we all had to show our drivers licences, we took the opportunity to have lunch at St. Clair’s. In the reserves we had 2 hatched chicks and several more pipping eggs.  brand new penguin chicks Katie arrived on Sunday to volunteer. She is Scottish, in NZ on a working visa and is helping us out for 2 weeks before she starts a ranger job with DOC. The second lot of precious cargo went down to DWH on Friday, with Robbie and Katie.  New life all around us. The chicks seem to be taking a while to get through the pipping stage. It could be because of the cold temperatures. This morning the sun is shining so we will see what today brings. Have a great week! Rosalie  Who am I? There are still stray penguins around that are not breeding. Hello friends and family, We got off to a quiet start. On Sunday I went to the Bluffs for some weed control and on Monday to Oamaru for shopping. The team came out on Tuesday, and we were joined by Megan and Jason from Dunedin. We all enjoy having them visit because penguin talk is normal! After the rounds, we went off to Tavora to rescue trees downed in a giant slip. It felt like valuable work!  Kaka beak showing vivid colour On Wednesday, it was my turn at the Toptip. It was great to catch up with the locals and hear their news.  The gulls are settling on the island On Thursday we began candling the eggs. It was a great day. The high level of experience within the team was apparent. Only one infertile egg was found, and the penguins were very calm. For the new breeders, it was the first time they had been handled, so very stressful for them.  Narrow-leafed Olearia in full bloom It was also the first roll out of our new hygiene protocols. All towels, screens and overalls were sterilized before washing, and the system worked well. There is room for improvement, but it will become second nature and keep the penguins safer. Friday was the calm before the storm and in the last 24 hours we have had 65mm of rain. The trees are loving it. They are in full bloom with sweet perfume wafting around.  The first cabbage trees are blooming in the carpark. Have a great week! Rosalie  brooding! Hello friends and family After many searches of the colonies, we have ended up with 36 nests. There are 21 nests here (down 5), 11 at Okahau and 4 (+1) at the Bluffs. This is a 10% drop from last season, (40) so each nest is even more precious. The team came out on Tuesday morning and it was great to catch up with all their news. On Wednesday, we delivered some abandoned eggs to the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital for incubation.  One of the 4 shag nests - with 3 chicks It is great to be home. I will be playing catch up for a while as gardens need to be dug, seeds and trees planted and rampant growth subdued.  Kowhai still blooming There was significant tree damage in the weather events while I was away, but only minor slips. Fortunately, the falling trees missed the penguin nest boxes, but in some cases, only just. The Shag chicks have hatched, and the Seal pups are continuing to die.  dehydrated, emaciated pups I spent time looking for the comet and a whale with her calf that Murray and Jan saw in the bay.  A non-breeder having a day at home There has been a good number of Titi return from their Siberian migration. Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family Dan and I had an epic ornithological odyssey to the USA. The sun shone every day, and I even got a suntan in New York.  We took a 12-hour flight to LA and then an Uber to Anaheim where we stayed on the 8th floor of a flash hotel, overlooking the swimming pool, (we did have a swim,) and palm trees.  We went to Disneyland for 2 days. My goal was to ride on a roller coaster and the one at Disneyland is the 6th biggest in the world – no point in starting off small! We had a great time there, went back on the second night to watch the fireworks – probably not a good plan as I got quite crook.  The roller coaster we went on The next day we were on the train to San Diego. Dan was a bit sceptical but that dissipated on arrival. By this time, he would get up in the morning, go out for a run and bring me back a coffee. How kind! (a survival strategy!) I found drugs for my cold and was fine very quickly.  A happy African penguin at San Diego Zoo. On the first day, we went to the famous San Diego Zoo. There we were looked after by Grace, a true penguin person, who showed us around, including her current work, which is bird propagation. What skill, incubating and raising birds from all families.  6 species of penguins live in this freezer, Emperors, Adelies, Chin strapped, Gentoos, Macaronis and Kings For the next 2 days we went to SeaWorld where we got to hang out with 8 different species of penguins and enjoy the marine mammal shows. Dan is now a convert to the wonders of San Diego, not including the Festival of the Dead which is happening now.  Orca center stage Our flight to New York was cancelled. We were transferred to a flight the next morning and got to fly over about 12 states of the USA and get an appreciation of the geography of the country. I have now seen the Mississippi river!  The Statue of Liberty By the time we arrived in New York, we were up for the subway and did not use Uber at all. On the first morning we went up the World Trade Centre, the 9th tallest building in the world, and took in the panoramic views. We spent the afternoon discovering Manhattan and, in the evening, went to Times Square because we could!  The Polish community parade. There were parades both days we were in Manhattan The next day we walked the Skyline, then explored Central Park (including having a hotdog from a street vendor.). By now we were taking the subway to save our feet. We walked over 100km on this holiday. In the evening, we went to a Broadway show – The Book of Mormon.  We went to the top of the World Trade Centre - the one with the tower on top. Next morning, we caught the bus to Ithaca. Ithaca is the home of Cornell University, ranked 20th in the world, it is a centre of excellence for bird knowledge. It is also home to Jill, who looked after us with great empathy. We met with professors and vets, seeking ideas about how we can best manage bird ‘flu.  There were Squirrels throughout New York state After a few days there, we caught an early morning flight to JFK airport in New York. That gave us a day to explore the neighbourhood and dip our toes into the Atlantic Ocean. At 10pm we departed JFK for Auckland, a 17-hour flight. It was easier than I expected so was very comfortable flying on to Dunedin and then driving home.  Upstate New York was cloaked in autumn I learned a lot about modern travel. Practically everything can be managed with a smart phone, which Dan did for us, so I had a cruisy time. PayWave in the USA is a thing, everywhere. I decided to be cheap and not get an eSim card for my phone. I will not do that again.  We saw Chipmunks in Ithaca In the meantime, the team withstood a one in 100-year storm event and cared for our penguins with great skill. The penguins are now incubating eggs. Have a great week! Rosalie |
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