Sunday 9th April 2017

Mrs 27 almost finished the moult

​Hello friends and family
Last Sunday Elaine and I went to the local cider making day in Hampden and took a lot of tiny apples that were too small for the machine and some pears that had been in the freezer since last season. It was fun. Our small lot of fruit was slipped in between huge collections. It was first chopped and then pressed. We came home with several litres of juice, some of which is in the fridge and some of which is set for cider.

the lucky Rock-hopper

​Monday was a day for weeding and trimming and then on Tuesday I treated the last of the bees for varroa. I felt good about completing that task, and as I was leaving the last hive, I got a call about a Crested penguin at the boulders. When I picked it up, I thought it was a Rockhopper. It settled in quickly and is feeding well. It is just heading into the moult, and at 2 kg, it will need a helping hand to survive.

wild water

​On Wednesday, more fish arrived. This was 12 days after the order went in and a logistical challenge – needless to say, I got the opportunity to defrost the freezer! Chris and Hiltrun arrived later in the day and we got in 2 days of great work, making sure that every penguin was OK, weeding, removing redundant fences and creating a new nest site where a penguin chose to moult.

escaping the wild water

​As Chris and Hiltrun were leaving on Friday evening we got an email about a sorry penguin at Moeraki. We were able to retrieve it and now it has an excellent chance of recovery.

Just showing off our beautiful new feathers

Have a great week!
Rosalie
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