Far North Weekend - Barn Owls, Little Egret, Cattle Egret, Brown Quail …

[ourspot]

Just had a great weekend of birding in the Far North with my wife and 3 young sons with a total of 41 species being accounted for.

The highlight of the weekend was our night encounter with the Kaitaia Barn Owls flying overhead, landing in the trees beside us, or on the ground in nearby field, and possibly feeding some fledglings in a nearby tree. Ours sons thought this was an amazing sight but they were slightly terrified by their impressive scary screeching. The kids especially loved that we had recently visited “Tahi” (the rescued, injured barn owl from here) down at Wingspan in Rotorua. We saw 2 Barn Owls flying together and then perching (a parent and a fledgling) but there may have been a couple more flying around as well.

There was plenty of action down Unahi Road in Awanui. The amazing sight of approx 300 Spoonbills perched in the Macrocarpa tree down by the wharf at high tide, with about another 200 in an adjacent field on the estuary edge. Fantastic to so many large birds together. In the hour we watched them many of the spoonbills flew from the tree to join the ones sitting in the paddock. Many had signs of breeding plumage colour.

Earlier on in Unahi Rd in a field of cows we spotted the flock of Cattle Egrets that’s been seen and mentioned recently – saw about 20 perched on fence posts or in the field amongst the cows.

And then on the next day in a different boggy field with a (also down Unahi Rd) we were very excited when we spotted a solitary Little Egret feeding amongst White Faced Herons, Mallards and Plovers. There were no cows or the flock of Cattle Egrets which is why this single bird stood out. Watched it for about half an hour poking around and flying very short distances.

Further up north on Lake Waiparera we saw 3 Australasian Little Grebes, a Dabchick and various shags and black swans.

Another great encounter was a bunch of 10 Brown Quails at the Cape Reinga lighthouse that fossicked and played around a few metres away from us until they burrowed into the undergrowth. Great chance to see their stunning plumage up close.

Sorry about the quality of the egret shots photos but that’s the best our camera would do at these distances. The views through our binoculars were much better!

[les]

cool!!would love to get up there for a look.Did you have info as to where to go to see them or was it a chance encounter?

[farnorth]

Hi All,
For everyone's information the owls are on private property. No one should be accessing the site unless by prior arrangement. The owls are one of our newest birds tenuously trying to establish themselves here in NZ and shouldn't be disturbed at close quarters especially during a breeding cycle. It is possible to arrange a visit (as many have) but through the appropriate channels.
Good Birding Kevin

[les]

that's probably a good thing.Any info on population numbers?spread to new areas etc?

[ourspot]

Hi everyone. As Kevin mentions the Barn Owls are on private property and this should be respected. We were priviledged enough to be invited by the landowner to view the owls. Cheers Scott

[fras444]

Hi everyone. As Kevin mentions the Barn Owls are on private property and this should be respected. We were priviledged enough to be invited by the landowner to view the owls. Cheers Scott

This overlooked article shoud give you a rough idea... I only found this just now when googling for updates.. There may just be a Barn owl "coming soon, to a farmland near you!!!"

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/home- ... ew-natives

[Clinton9]

Nothing about pelicans ???

[Les Feasey]

Hi Clinton,
We've been keeping an eye out for pelicans on Ninety Mile Beach, East Beach, Kowhai Beach, some tours of the Kaipara, and some at Waipu.
Some of us regularly get out to Rangunu Harbour, and as with the other sites, no luck so far.
I'll let you know if we have any luck,
Cheers,
Les Feasey