 An adult penguin preening a juvenile Hello friends and family Once again Monday and Tuesday were fine and clear, only this week it was very soft underfoot and the spontaneous streams were still running on Tuesday afternoon, it was not until Wednesday afternoon that the ground started to dry out in places.  Yes, for a time, with the road closures, the car park was empty. The rain returned on Thursday but was only 6 mm.  Warm winter colour Yesterday, Chris, Hiltrun and I attempted to mitigate the damage done by last week’s storm.
We repaired and re-located 3 nest boxes which involved a lot of digging, slipping and sliding and decision making about how to go forward. Where possible, we let the penguins decide! Have a great week Rosalie Hello friends and family After the storm... Monday and Tuesday were lovely days and so I was able to potter around outside and remove several layers of clothing, only feeling the cold at about 4:30 pm when it was time to come indoors.  A Shy juvenile Yellow-eyed penguin It was Okay on Wednesday and Thursday as well, with the rain arriving in the early hours of Friday. This bad weather was well predicted and so I left all the indoor jobs to Friday, finding it very strange to be indoors for a whole day. I only went outside to empty the rain gauge. We got the 150 mm promised  The lucky pups - chubby with lots of friends So even though I am thinking that it is very wintery, the Spotted Shags are checking out their nesting sites and looking very sexy in their beautiful breeding plumage.  A Spotted Shag in breeding plumage The timing of this storm should mean that they choose higher sites and don’t get washed off their nests after the eggs are laid.  A New Zealand Sea-lion - my furry neighbours to the west. Days like Friday help me appreciate the home improvements of double glazing and insulation. The extreme weather is now something that I see out the window, and not the window rattling, noisy drafty experience that it used to be!
Have a great week! Rosalie  Mr Grandpa at home Hello friends and family This started as a very quiet week with bad weather keeping things slow. I did my stint at the Top tip shop on Wednesday and even though it is school holidays, it too was quiet. We had wind, rain sleet and hail but no snow to break the gloom!  A Bellbird in the Kakabeak On Thursday morning, I did the monitoring round and saw one juvenile penguin at home, and a couple of males in boxes. Because the lighthouse is a maritime feature, Katiki point is referenced on the sailor’s website based in Norway. ( http://www.yr.no/place/New_Zealand/Otago/Katiki_Point/hour_by_hour.html ) This gives me the most accurate forecast going, so I knew that it would not rain until mid-day – sure enough, the drizzle started at noon and so I spent the afternoon indoors.  Indecisive weather On Friday, I went to Elaine’s for lunch. The sun was shining and we forgot the cold weather and had a great catch up.  Photo bombed by Mrs Blackbird Chris and Hiltrun arrived on Friday night and we spent yesterday working in the reserves on our two priorities. One is to prepare the nests for the new season and the other is to plant trees while the ground is damp. Driving to the Moeraki colony is a challenge for a control freak like me with the wet and slippery ground.
Have a great week! Rosalie  Pair bonding Hello friends and family I have decided to build a carport. I have wanted a cover over the front door ever since I moved here and have always put it on hold because it was easier. If I make it a carport, then any visitors with an electric vehicle will be able to charge it safely.  Looking magnificent The first and hardest part was to decide what I wanted – what I don’t want is easy and comes in a kit set so to be happy I will build it myself. This place is zoned rural residential and so I don’t need a building permit for a car port under 20 m squared. I have planned it, written down what I need and taken the list to the store for a quote.  Seals enjoying the winter sun So I am on my way to Oamaru on Wednesday and get stopped by roadworks at the Maheno level crossing. The lollypop man comes across and taps on my window. “Do you take volunteers?” he asks. I was surprized that anyone could read the signs of Penguin Rescue on my door as the truck is covered in mud. Chris came up in the afternoon.  This beach normally has 4 sets of footprints On Thursday morning Chris and I liberated a few native plants from Doug’s forest and in the afternoon, Sue and Dave from the Yellow-eyed penguin Trust called in on their way home from Oamaru. They are working towards closing their reserve at Tavora in the breeding season to protect their penguins SIGH! I showed them how ours must slot into their small area so people can visit the historic reserve.  WA nicely round penguin warming the nest bowl Friday was a day for planting and trimming trees and Hiltrun arrived so we could do even more on Saturday!
Have a great week! Rosalie  just being together Hello friends and family The end of June marks the end of our penguin year and so we begin the review process to help us make smarter decisions for the penguins in the year going forward. At the moment, I am doing monitoring rounds every second day and so this gives me time to do some jobs at Hampden. On the top of the list there is fencing around the Hazelnut trees so the sheep can graze the bottom paddock and then cutting down some gorse so I can plant the 50+ Tree Lucerne I have growing in the aviary here.  testing a refurbished nest box I am having to be more flexible than I thought. Plan A – cut down the gorse, starting at the bottom of the hill, arrange it in windrows and plant the tree Lucerne in between. Well the gorse is over 4 m high and once it has fallen I can’t move it! Plan B – let it fall where it may and plant the tree Lucerne in the tangled mass of gorse which will rot down quite quickly. So on Tuesday I got half way up the eastern fence line and then had to cut my way out! The fallen gorse is over a meter deep so maybe the Lucerne will go at the back of the orchard.  showing off the real estate to a new girl Chris and Hiltrun arrived on Friday evening and on Saturday morning we did the monitoring rounds with chainsaw in hand to cut logs to stuff into the rabbit burrow entrances in the nesting boxes. This came in the donation box; Hi, I am Charlotte. I am 27 years old. I am French. I am in New Zealand since January. I would like to help you protect penguins but I think they don’t need money, just room and no people around… I stay 2 hours and half here and I see many people who don’t respect seals and penguins… I am the first to be happy to see them but after I feel so sad when I see people be next to seals to have the best picture they can have it, they don’t care about 10 meters and they don’t care about signs “not enter”. I love this country for the nature but I don’t like the behaviour of some people. I would like someone from the DOC here to check tourists and says to them “STAY AWAY”. I don’t know if I will be heard but I know in NZ every dream is possible. Thank you for your amazing work. 25th June 2017 at 5:03 pm.  Yet another fence climber Have a great week!
Rosalie |
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