Manawatu estuary today

[Peter Frost]

A white heron was present at the Manawatu estuary today. It was in non-breeding plumage -- yellow-orange bill and no plumes. It spend all the time that I saw it, between 12:50 and 14:45, standing in the salt marsh in the bay between the sandspit and Holben Parade. It was a third or more larger than a white-faced heron that landed briefly close to it.

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Other species present on the mudflats on the receding tide (13:45-14:45) were:
Bar-tailed godwit 149 (a number with colour-bands and ELFs but too far and too hazy to see any details)
Lesser knot 28
Banded dotterel 2
Pied stilt 4
Pied oystercatcher 14
Variable oystercatcher 2
Spurwing plover 2
Black shag 4
White-faced heron 2
No golden plovers seen, American or otherwise, although I heard secondhand that someone had seen golden plovers on the sandspit around high tide, but were then disturbed.

Incidental counts of some more notable species made during the morning were: variable oystercatcher (5); pied oystercatcher (13); Caspian tern (7); white-fronted tern (9); black-billed gull (2); red-billed gull (6); and black-backed gull(18). Some disturbance from kites (the manufactured kind) and stand-up paddle-boarders, the latter going close to the sandspit at high tide. The godwits and knots apparently then moved to roost close to the river mouth.

Peter

[Peter Frost]

White heron still present, although only appeared in the bay behind the sandspit well after the tide had begun to fall. It flew in from upstream, suggesting that it might have spent the high-tide period in the Fernbird Flats marsh.

Other species present were:
Canada goose 1
White-faced heron 2
Black shag 4
Pukeko 2
Bar-tailed godwit 206
Lesser knot 42
Pacific golden plover 2
Pied stilt 18
Variable oystercatcher 3
Spurwing plover 2
White-fronted tern 18
Little tern 1
Caspian tern 4
Red-billed gull 11
Black-billed gull 9
Black-backed gull at least 20
plus the usual range of passerines

Peter

[sav]

Peter,
Sorry to have missed you. We were there from about 10am till nearly midday. 4 "golden plovers" were present and one was even more like an American GP to me - all the dark spots on the breast are gone, but it has a very dusky upper breast even so , maybe a little like the pattern of a Pectoral Sand. The structure, and stance, of this bird make it stand out as much as the plumage differences do. It is longer, and more attenuated at the rear end. It holds itself more horizontal.
The 11 American birders with me contained some with lots of experience who were very happy to call it an AGP.

[Peter Frost]

Just to clarify a point: Sav in his posting under WWBT at Foxton Estguary yesterday said:

White-eyed Duck, Common and Little Tern, Little Egret - all in a couple of hours...

http://www.birdingnz.net/forum/viewtopi ... 084#p13463. I think he was referring to the little egret seen at Lake Horowhenua, not at the Manawatu estuary. The bird there is a white heron, as reported earlier. Two heavily cropped photos taken yesterday attached:

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Sorry to have missed you too, Sav. I thought of you when one of your CT-4E Airtrainers flew fairly low over Foxton Beach while I was looking at the hardhead. Probably your squadron commander wondering what you were up to . KW

Peter

[sav]

dead right Peter. I was indeed referring to the Little Egret at Lake Horrowhenua.
cheers