 Guess what? I have 2 chicks! Hello friends and family We have our first chicks! On our monitoring rounds on Thursday we found 2 nests with pipping eggs. By yesterday we had 6 chicks and 4 more pips. The warm weather continued through until Thursday, made interesting here by some very thick and swirling fog that arrived on Monday night and left on Thursday as the cold heavy rain arrived.  The new fence designed to reduce the visitor disturbance for the penguins Elaine came out on Monday to help with the monitoring round and all the penguins were very settled. On Tuesday, Robbie, Jan and I went to the Catlins. I had asked for photos of the new penguin fence at the Curioscape centre in Curio Bay and as none were forthcoming, we went down to take our own. The trip was truly AWESOME! We traveled in Barb’s BMW, being the most efficient vehicle available and had the roof back for most of the trip as it was very warm.  Effective signage I have not been to the Catlins before in glorious weather and I think every spring bloom was at its best and giving off delicious perfume. We then went to Long Point to observe the habitat available to the penguins there and saw some NZ Sealions. The last stop in the Catlins was the Lighthouse at the Nuggets and the penguin hide there.  Looking south from Long Point The penguins have a vast, unspoiled coastline available to them down there in the Catlins and it is hard to understand why they are not flourishing. We still have the largest and second largest mainland colonies here in North Otago. Some of the signage was impressive, ignored by fellow travelers but well thought out and with simple messages.  The rugged south face of Long Point On Wednesday I went to share an update with the practice manager at Oamaru Vets and they are willing to continue their excellent support of our work. We have been working together for many years and they have a practical respect for our work and a love of penguins. Thursday was our next monitoring round and then Chris and Adrian arrived early on Friday to battle the boxthorns.  Nugget point lighthouse with some of the southern nuggets Yesterday after the monitoring rounds I upgraded the protection around 7 Taupheta trees. The wind and the sheep are very hard on the commercial tree protectors and we need to upgrade them sooner rather than later!
Have a great week! Rosalie  What do you want? A penguin incubating eggs Hello friends and family The weather was much better this week as we worked our way through the never-ending list of jobs. Planting will come to a halt as the ground hardens off. The next phase is weed control and we will spot spray the thistles which can best be described as lush.  The offending pond On Tuesday, Chris and Adrian came up to join Jan, Robbie and I. Jim our DOC penguin liaison person came up for the day too, so he could get an update of the work that we are doing. Fresh eyes are always a good thing and he found mosquito wrigglers in the salt pond that I had not even considered as possible habitat. It was treated on Wednesday!  An unusual visitor - a moulting Leopard seal Robbie brought his neighbours out on Thursday and they were very interested in helping with our work, which is wonderful as there is plenty to be done. More progress was made on the pens and the weather was glorious.  Lucky Shag chicks with doting parents Yesterday we candled the eggs. We have a special box to do this, which we bring out once a year and the whole process was smooth and a cause for great pride. The penguins behaved perfectly. and we have a very high level of fertility this season. Candling enables us to transfer any eggs that are at risk before they hatch, to maximise survival. This is one of the reasons why we monitor – to habituate the penguins to our care so they don’t stress too much when we need their co-operation. We never forget that they are wild!  Busy bees - strips out and supers on! Let's make honey Have a great week!
Rosalie  Minding an egg from a threatened nest Hello friends and family By the time I had treated the standing water last Sunday, I had walked 10 km. The gear that I was using was very light and so I was just pleasantly tired by the end of it. In contrast, on Monday I laid tiles in front of Robbie’s rehab and by the time I had cleared away the 6 bins of soil left over from putting in the drainage, carted about ½ m3 of shingle and the tiles, I was very tired!  A Pukeko nest at the water's edge On Tuesday, Robbie and I constructed the new mosquito proof soft release pens. This was possible because Robbie had pre-cut the timber and had a plan. We still had to carry all the old pens out and the new stuff in, about ¼ km up hill but that was relatively easy. Jan did the monitoring rounds and the penguins were all settled on their eggs, so we could work until about 3 pm when the penguins started coming home.  A clutch of ducklings hiding behind mum I am so happy – delighted in fact- that our big plan has come to pass. There was an article in the ODT about a high incidence of Avian Pox in Wax-eyes and Wood pigeons in Otago. Part of the management is to control mosquitoes and isolate birds from them Tick, tick for us!  Robbie putting the finishing touches on the soft release pens All of this has cost money and we have been so fortunate to have the support of the Farm next door and we have eaten into our financial reserves. My idea of tragedy is to have money in the bank and no penguins.  This is the car park after closing time - the silly season has begun On Thursday Jan and I were lucky enough to see a pod of 5 Orcas swimming north and when we did the rounds, all the penguins were very settled.  Baby sheep and baby trees - a challenging combination The storm arrived on Friday. We had sleet, hail and high winds. I spent most of the day indoors – either soft or sensible, I am not sure!
Chris and Hiltrun arrived for dinner and we did the rounds on Saturday, discovering that a penguin egg had been stolen from the south nest during the week. This is the 3rd stolen egg we have experienced – people take them from the south end. I don’t know why. Have a great week! Rosalie  Waiting, waiting, waiting... Hello friends and family This week the last of our expected penguin eggs were laid and now the colonies are very quiet as the eggs are incubated – mostly by snoozing on them! Robbie came on Tuesday and we mosquito proofed the rehab centre – next on the list is the soft release pens. Wednesday was my turn at the Top-tip shop – the months go by so quickly!  Clematis blooming in the reserve On Thursday, Jan, Robbie and I did the monitoring round and found the penguins to be quite settled except in Tickle Bay which was criss-crossed with penguin footprints! Robbie brought out his trailer and has begun work on the soft release pens. These need to be upgraded to protect the penguins from mosquitoes.  Gathering gulls The weather forecasters keep promising us rain which does not eventuate, so we just make our plans for fine weather and only got wet once this week! This week, for the first time, visitors reported not seeing any seals when they walked down to the point. It would be sad indeed if they succumbed to constant harassment and chose to live somewhere else.  Glorious Kowhai Yesterday Hiltrun and I did the rounds in beautiful sunshine and admired the red-billed gulls that are beginning to nest on the headland. Today I am checking the ponds for mosquitoes wrigglers and treating any standing water that is infected.  distant reflections Have a great week!
Rosalie |
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