BirdingNZ.net

I was in Westport today and had a look at the new Kawatiri River Trail which has been constructed on the edge of town.

There's an article about it here: http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/news/8934 ... iver-trail

I only had half an hour so just went around the Lost Lagoon Loop. In the beds of rushes there I "saw" four crakes. The first two were just the suggestions of crakes (i.e. well enough hidden that you can't actually get a look at them but you can see the movement). A third was seen dashing across a gap between sections of rushes - I thought this one was a Spotless Crake because it looked all-dark, but I didn't see it well enough and it could easily have been a Marsh Crake instead. The fourth bird I saw was a Marsh Crake out in the open which I got to watch for several minutes - the first one I've ever managed to see!

This seems like a good (and apparently quite easy) place to see Marsh Crakes for anyone going through the area.

Hi. Very interested to see this post. I've worked on this trail network for the last few years and have a bird interest as well. Could you give more detail as to where you saw these birds. Thanks

Hey.

In the rushes at the east end of the Lost Lagoon loop trail (as in, the area contained within that loop trail - the western end is open water, the eastern end is rushes). From the southern stretch of the track (nearest the river) most of the viewing is obscured by vegetation between the track and the lagoon. From the northern stretch of the track (furthest from the river)the viewing is open across the rushes.

I also saw what may have been one in the rushes just where the "floating boardwalk" by the wharves meets the track, but it was just a flash as the bird disappeared so it could have been anything.

Has anyone seen any crakes at the lagoon loop trail since Byrd's original post?

I visited this site twice on 11th and 12th November at low tide to look for crakes but didn't see any. The only sightings of note were a Shining Cuckoo and two Kereru in trees at the southern end and a dozen godwits seen feeding on exposed mud over the other side of the river.