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Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Sun May 19, 2019 3:33 pm
by simon.fordham
There is a Facebook posting, with pictures, of a juvenile falcon on the Island last weekend. This is the first record since the restoration project began, some 35 years ago.

Re: Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 7:06 am
by Neil Fitzgerald
It will be interesting to see how long it stays and what impact it has. I guess there might be some who would rather it move on, but it is a great sign of a recovering ecosystem to have a top predator back.

Re: Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 6:22 pm
by zarkov
I imagine a Falcon would be come as a nasty shock for most of the resident birds.

They've had it pretty sweet there for a while.

Re: Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 7:26 pm
by simon.fordham
Really Zarkov? What about the harriers, moreporks, pukeko, black-backed gulls etc.? The effects of one falcon, particularly as it is likely to be transient, would be negligible.

Re: Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 9:45 pm
by simon.fordham
Here is a photo, courtesy of Simon Nicholas.

tiri falcon.JPG
tiri falcon.JPG (269.11 KiB) Viewed 2620 times


This was taken at around 3.00 PM, Saturday 11 May, on the lower end of the Kawerau Track.

Re: Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Tue May 21, 2019 10:54 pm
by zarkov
simon.fordham wrote:Really Zarkov? What about the harriers, moreporks, pukeko, black-backed gulls etc.? The effects of one falcon, particularly as it is likely to be transient, would be negligible.


It was a tongue in cheek comment.

If you're a bird on Tiri, encountering a falcon would be an unwelcome addition to the local predator list.

Re: Falcon on Tiritiri Matangi Island

Posted: Wed May 22, 2019 8:52 pm
by Neil Fitzgerald
Who's it having afternoon tea with? Yellow feet.