Saturday, August 1, 2009

Ulva Island

Moody sky (I love days like this!)

Weka in natural setting


One of the reasons I went to Stewart Island was to see the bird life. Ulva Island, a small island just a few minutes away from Stewart Island by boat, is a bird sanctuary that is rife with bird life not found in other parts of the world. What's more, you can actually get pretty close to them here, though they are completely wild. I did my best to take pictures and videos, but as with the world of the wild, you never know where they'll go next or how the shot will turn out. In some of the videos, it's best to listen rather than look at the grainy scene.

Docking at Ulva Island


Tomtit

The bark on this tree has been stripped by kakas, a native New Zealand parrot (red and gray)


On the rocky shores

New Zealand wood pigeon, apparently the largest pigeon in the world

Tui


Below: Tui Singing (absolutely unique and inspiring)


Below: I believe this is a juvenile New Zealand Saddleback, not sure though!

Below: The inquisitive nature of the Stewart Island Robin


Below: The song of the bellbird

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bellbird's got my vote!!!

:o)

a

L said...

I love the Tui the most, but the bellbird is pretty awesome too. I think the Tui takes my heart because it's such a noble looking bird. I'll have to find a decent picture of it and post it for you to see what I mean.