 going fishing Hello friends and family, On Sunday Monica and I went to Anderson’s lagoon, looking for Spoonbills but only saw a couple in the distance. We checked out Shag Point on our way home. Monday was the day for farewells, and I dropped Monica off in Dunedin on my way to a meeting. Thank you, Monica, and happy travels.  Jonquils The team was joined by Mark on Tuesday, so we began the winter upgrade of nests down the hill. We are replacing the nest boxes that get particularly stinky when the chicks are being raised. We picked up the underweight moulter at nest 20 but it was Mrs 26 so that is a mystery. We then planted 20 trees at Okahau.  A sealion lurking in the flax I got a call on Wednesday from a DOC officer in Blenheim. They had found a fledgling Hoiho on their dog walking beach. They have never found one that far north before. It was Bruno. Bruno is a female that has had an interesting life already. She went to the Dunedin Wildlife hospital at 2 days old and failed to thrive. She stayed there for 15 days and when she came home, we fostered her into nest 80.  Babies can sleep anywhere 15 days later, she was attacked by a predator and injured. She could not stand up and went back to the wildlife hospital for treatment. 17 days later, she was home again, put in rehab with other chicks and had issues around her posture. It took her 2 months to recover and feed from the hand, but she did, and so was released in good health on 18th February. You can watch her go to sea here. www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWkk9Rn9Ofk&t=681s 2 months later she arrived in Blenheim weighing 3.8kg, so in need of a helping hand. She will go to Christchurch and then maybe back here.  A penguin pair trying out a different nest box for size. More nest upgrade work was done by the team on Thursday and on Friday I planted another 10 trees as we had another 6mm of rain. Have a great week! Rosalie   morning glow Hello friends and family The weather has returned to our normal sunny awesomeness and after the rain, the tree planting has begun. On Monday morning I picked up Monica, our new American volunteer from Palmerston and joy of joys, she eats a normal diet. She checked out the point in the morning and in the afternoon, we planted the first 10 Akeake trees. On Tuesday, after doing the rounds in the morning, we went to the Bluffs to check on the Whale. It was just a pile of bones – interesting bones, none the less.  The spine of the Beaked Whale Wednesday was the day to take the scenic route to Oamaru – up the Kakanui river valley to the Elephant Rocks, down to the Waitaki river, which was magnificent and then to Oamaru.  Who is checking who out? While Monica got the gear she needed for her upcoming tramp of the Routeburn Track, I got my ‘flu and COVID jabs. The Chemist in Oamaru did them both with no fuss and that was great. We carried on to check out the Oamaru Blue Penguin Colony and caught up with Henry and his penguin news. We had lunch at the Boulders on the way home and Monica cooked dinner.  A puddle of feathers - someone moulted here. The team came out on Thursday, and we did the monitoring rounds, finding Mrs 160 with a minor flipper injury but underweight so she came into care. We are doing a blitz on the traps at the moment and catching feral cats, rats and ferrets. Some traps have 4 different lures in them! In the afternoon we planted 12 Mountain Akeakes at the Bluffs.  So magnificent after the moult On Friday, Monica joined Bronwyn for a swim, and we all met at the Tavern for a meal of Blue Cod. Delicious! Yesterday was a wonderful day because Mrs 20 has come home. She is 3 weeks late to moult, but she is so welcome anyway. This leaves us with two missing females and one that we have no real evidence of, except feathers, I took Monica to Trotters gorge to find unicorn food in the afternoon. It was a great walk and enjoyed by us both.  Easter Orchid Have a great week! Rosalie  Moulting alone. Hello friends and family, The change of seasons continues to bring beautiful skies and wonderful light – we are hoping for rain! It is a pre-requisite for the new planting season. Young trees are gathering weeds and becoming root-bound – time to plant them out.  Newly moulted. The team came out on Tuesday, and all was well in the colonies. The task of the day was to empty the big freezer and use the chest freezers to save money on running costs. With everyone’s help it did not take long, but how embarrassing! I had supplies dating back to 2017. Fortunately, everything just fitted in the chest freezers, so there was no waste.  Tourist pressure is driving the seals off the point and into the colony. It was my turn at the Toptip on Wednesday, and it was a quiet morning, but the big news is, there is now a toilet! Up until now, going to the loo was really off the agenda unless another worker turned up to cover. Now I will take a thermos and have a coffee mid-morning. What luxury!  Just a few days later - penguin rehydrated with partner By Thursday morning, the predicted rain had not arrived and so we did the rounds, and, in the afternoon, Jan and I tackled a boxthorn while Robbie built some new houses and Murray sorted plants and traps. At 3pm it started to rain. After two wet days, I am looking forward to doing the rounds today. Have a great week! Rosalie  Stunning autumn weather Hello friends and family. The week started with average weather, but on Tuesday it was a cracker – warm, still, and beautiful. The team came out and we did the rounds – Mr. 8 had company, but we don’t know who she is. We brought in Mr. and Mrs. 16 and Mrs. 23. The 16s eluded us last season so I was very pleased that they both fed from the hand as that will keep handling to a minimum. We released the Kaikoura chick and an adult. This brought the number in care to 20. Jan stayed and cleaned 2 pens.  New feathers in place and on holiday for 4 months On Wednesday, I did some weed spraying at the Hampden house and around here. I have used the electric lawnmower to mow the lawns here and it was very straight forward. Because I can turn it on and off without a fuss, it makes the whole job easy. I can complete the job on a single charge, so that is a plus too.  The days are getting shorter, and sunrise is accessible. The team came out on Thursday, and we did the monitoring rounds. Two penguins came in, a moulting adult and a returned fledgling that just needs a top up. Four penguins were released. There were some new moulters in the colony, but they are a great weight and don’t need help, despite being so late. We have passed 100 penguins in care this season with the current total at 103, including all species.  What we call a boofer! The last few days have been a time for releasing penguins back to the wild. We now have 7 in care. We have used up all of the donated salmon smolt and it definitely showed in improved release weights. Thank you again, Alpine Salmon.  The apples are ready to harvest Have a great week! Rosalie |
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