Hello friends and family, This has been a full-on week. On Sunday morning I went down the hill only to see 2 small boats with about 8 people harassing Hector’s dolphins. The people were young and selfish, but our protected species deserve better. I reported them. Monday was my birthday, so I was treated to chatting with the family and yummy food. Older but just as hedonistic! The team came out on Tuesday morning, and we did the rounds. We found about 6 penguins going into the moult at great weights, so we left them to get on with it. We found 2 under 7 kgs so brought them in. One was Mrs. 297, and she was with her partner, so we brought in the pair. Guess who lines up first for extra fish? It does not matter. She needs help and can get it with her mate happy in care. We took 9 chicks to soft release, leaving only 3 here at the lighthouse. We got a call about a penguin at Kakanui, so Robbie spent a lot of time looking for it. He found one – a starving adult Hoiho from Stewart Island that we could not save. It has gone for an autopsy. The busy times continued on Thursday. It was great to release the Little penguin down the hill where we found it. It took off to sea very quickly. Robbie picked up Mr 17 from the Wildlife hospital and then we found 3 more penguins needing help at Okahau. One was on the landing waiting for us. The rest of the team went off to the Bluffs and I stayed with Elaine who was doing the bloods. It is so helpful to know more about why these beautiful birds need help. Jan brought back 2 penguins from the Bluffs. One of them was perched out in the full sun, on the cliff face. When she got here, she did not want to get out of the carry cage! On Friday evening, we picked up our first failed fledgling. It was one of ours, a natural fledge from Okahau that is already feeding from the hand.
Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family, This week started out a little differently – we had an injured penguin come in down the hill. Someone saw it, told someone else who called DOC. DOC left me a message and so after closing time, Jan and I went down and rescued it. It had a slash wound to the belly, so on Monday morning, Dave and I took it down to the Dunedin Wildlife hospital. We did the rounds on Tuesday morning, noting the chicks that had fledged and checking on the rest. We were treated to a display by a pod of Hector’s dolphins in the bay. I counted 6 of them. Most of the chicks were fine and we only weighed a sample of them to ensure they were okay. We took 6 chicks to soft release at Okahau and Robbie opened the door for the chicks at the Bluffs. The crested penguin we have in care dropped feathers to reveal white cheeks – it is a Tawaki! On Thursday the team was joined by Environmental officers from the Waitaki District Council and the Otago Regional Council. Both were very encouraging and supportive of our work. We rescued an injured penguin that was taken down to the Wildlife hospital. We took the opportunity to say farewell to Dave with a picnic lunch at the Bluffs. 4 more chicks were taken there for soft release. Friday was the day to catch up on the parked chores and get ready for Saturday morning when I drove Dave to the airport. I also picked up the Kawariki chick from the OPERA so it can be released here. Jan has come out to help with the afternoon feeds for the last 2 weeks – such great support!
Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family. Once again, the weather gods smiled on us at the start of the week, and then left us to a very mixed bag! Tuesday was the first big day. We had 25 chicks to catch and weigh, were a man down and had to bring 3 of them into care for Malaria. We did very well, managing creches of up to 6 chicks who are averaging 6kgs and have hardened beaks. The first chick had fledged on Tuesday. We picked up our first Crested penguin on Sunday. It was found by a dog – no human would have seen it. It is an Erect Crested penguin, starving in the moult, and settled it quickly. It is not well, hiding in the dark and not feeding from the hand. Wednesday was Toptip day and Dave came along for the experience. It was a slow but steady morning, and the afternoon was grey. On Thursday, the first 4 of the chicks went to soft release. Robbie and Murray took them down, along with two vets from the Wildlife hospital. They get very few chances to see the penguin habitat and it was great to see them. One of our chicks was in their care for over 5 weeks, so it was nice to be able to show them the progress the chick has made. On Friday I had an appointment in Dunedin at 9:15am so it was an early start. I fed 29 penguins in 17 minutes! It was another grey day, but we took the scenic route home anyway. It has not really warmed up much since!
Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family, Our fun in the sun continues. On Monday I took Dave to visit some local spots, including the Boulders, and the team came out on Tuesday to do the chick weighing here. The chicks will fledge in the next few weeks, so it is time to measure their heads. This is to get an indication of gender. We could not find 2 of the chicks, Chick 42 has been missing for 2 weeks, chick 90 was seen in the weekend. On Wednesday Dave and I went to Oamaru in the morning to stock up on essentials and went via Kakanui to show Dave the coastline. We got home in time to get a message that we needed to drop a parcel off in Palmerston, so took the opportunity to visit Anderson’s lagoon – no needy penguins, but a nice flock of Spoonbills! Thursday was the turn of the Okahau chicks to be weighed and measured. The chicks are holding their weights rather than getting heavier. I went down after dinner to look for Chick 42 again and found him where he used to be. His mum was faded and scrawny – she would be lucky to tip the scales at 4kgs. I brought the chick in to give her a chance. Friday and Saturday were ruled by the weather. It was wet on Friday and windy on Saturday. Jan came out and helped with the afternoon feeding and locking the gate. On Friday night at about 11pm, a group of 4 young men came out in a souped-up saloon and did damage to the entrance way. Patrick was on to it, and it was all soon repaired. We heard the perpetrators, but the guy next door, rabbit shooting, saw them. We have 28 penguins in care. The first of the chicks will be going to soft release this week.
Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family The weather was glorious for the start of the week. Both Sunday and Monday were warm enough to sit about and do little. We picked up another adult penguin which brought our total to 18 in care. The rain arrived on Monday night, and we got 16mm – great in every way but the timing. We still had 7 chicks to screen. We scrambled through the slippery slopes and got 5 of them. The last 2 are too well hidden. We brought up 2 more chicks that are not thriving, bringing the rehab total to 20. Dave met the team and shared some of his many stories. On Wednesday, we headed inland to the Elephant rocks and then on to the Waitaki River mouth. We completed the outing with lunch at Scotts Brewery and got more jobs done when we got home. Thursday was a little different with Jan, Robbie and Dan heading south to a meeting in Dunedin while the rest of us checked the chicks here and weighed the chicks at Okahau. All but one had lost weight and one more so than the rest, so we brought that one in. Sadly, we found another dead one and it has been sent off for autopsy. It was the turn of the Bluffs in the afternoon, and as Dave had not been there before, we went to Kawariki Bay and found the male breeder with a swollen foot. In he came, and then on Friday morning, off to the Wildlife Hospital for vet assessment.
Yesterday Hiltrun did the rounds and Dave went off to the Bluffs with Murray. I processed some more blood smears. Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family The promised rain has eluded us and so watering the plant nursery is always on the list of things to do. On Monday we parked the list and went to Oamaru for lunch at Scotts Brewery. They make pizzas for vegans, so it is an enjoyable option. We purchased tee shirts for penguin branding and so Dan has yet another creative task to do. On Tuesday we began the blood sampling of the chicks. Thank goodness they are identified as finding them is a challenge. It is a big job, so we have split it into 3. We did the first 29 on Tuesday then the next 18 on Thursday. That leaves us a few in each colony to find and test next Tuesday. Wednesday was Toptip day and in the afternoon, Dan went to the T20 international cricket game in Dunedin. We took a blow on Thursday when one of our chicks at Okahau died on its way to the Wildlife hospital. We picked up its sibling and a chick from Bluffs that was not thriving too. Down to 59 chicks. Yesterday Dan and I picked up 4 more chicks who have plasmodium in their blood. We did this to reduce the malaria threat to the other 8 penguin chicks living close by. In the afternoon, Dan drove down to the airport and picked up Dave, our new volunteer from North England. Dave is a retired policeman who volunteers as a way of life. The weather has been glorious, and we are making the most of it.
Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family Sunday had very nice weather, so Dan and I went to Trotter’s gorge and climbed the top track. I voted against the rock climb at the top, so enjoyed the flowering Kanuka for a bit longer. Monday was a day for weeding potted trees and hedge cutting. The team came out on Tuesday morning, and we microchipped the last 16 chicks. All 60 now have a number and therefore exist! In the evening we went to the Bluffs for a fish and chip dinner. We celebrated the first chick ever to have hatched at the Bluffs and been microchipped. In the past they would have been marked with a flipper band. Wednesday was my day to go to the surgeon about my nose. I am going to need further surgery in the next 2 months. The weather was miserable so no worries about having a day away. On Thursday we weighed the chicks at Okahau. One was falling behind and so we uplifted it to rehab on Friday to observe its behaviour.
Today we are expecting rain so will do the rounds early. Have a great week! Rosalie Hello friends and family Happy New Year. 2024 started here with sunshine and light breezes. Dan and I had planned an adventure – visiting the dead whale, but it was too difficult to walk on the wet clay platform to get around the headland, so we gave up. Dan ran the length of Hampden beach – 10kms and I picked him up at the Moeraki end. On Tuesday we microchipped 19 chicks down the hill and welcomed a group of 25 visiting American rehabbers. Their task for the afternoon was to weed the wildlife reserve, which is most appreciated. It was a big job, so they came back on Thursday afternoon and finished it. On Thursday morning, the team micro-chipped the chicks at Okahau, the Bluffs and in rehab. Only 15 more to do on Tuesday to complete the job! It was a busy day on Thursday. After the micro-chipping and visitors, we uplifted our first juvenile YEP of the season. They are brought in from now on, to help them through the moult. He is of concern at 5 kgs and has no appetite. Then Jim the DOC ranger arrived, and we helped him free a seal from a fishing net. It was resting on the island and fortunately, not too large. What a great start to the year – saving a victim of human carelessness! Then yesterday, Dan went down to keeper’s bay and found 12 dead seals – 3 of which had been decapitated. We have reported it to DOC.
Have a great week! Rosalie |
Archives
April 2024
|