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New Zealand, Oct 2024

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This was a family holiday, not a birding expedition, so photography was on an 'ad hoc' basis. I shouldn’t have been, but I was stunned by the birding situation in NZ. The introduction of rats, stoats, cats and possums has devastated the native bird life, which evolved without exposure to many natural predators. On top of these challenges, the European settlers introduced an array of familiar birds to out compete the local fauna e.g. Blackbirds, Swallows, Starlings, Song Thrush, Yellowhammers and Mallards.  Really sad to see. Seabirds We had good views of seabirds from the whale watching boat from Kaikoura, although I'm not sure of the species level ID.       Albatross          Shearwater        Petrel Banded Dotterel The Banded Dotterel (also known as the Double-banded Plover) is a small, native shorebird found throughout New Zealand.  These birds inhabit coastal areas, estuaries, riverbeds, and sandy beaches, often nesting on open ground. Banded Dotterels are seasonal migr
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Red footed Falcon at Elmley, late Sept 2024

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The Red-footed Falcon ( Falco vespertinus ) is a small migratory bird of prey that occasionally visits the UK. It breeds in Eastern Europe and Asia and migrates to sub-Saharan Africa for the winter. In the UK, it is considered a rare vagrant, typically seen during spring and autumn migration periods. The species does not winter in the UK. This bird has showed very well at Elmley NR for the last few days. Its hunting pattern is fast and 'darting', so all of my close up shoots were out of focus as the camera did not have time to track and focus the bird!
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Two scarce birds in Kent, Sept 2024

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  Temminck's Stint on the east scrape at Oare Temminck's Stint is a small wader that migrates to the UK mainly during spring and autumn as it travels between its Arctic breeding grounds and wintering areas in Africa. It is a scarce visitor in the UK, often spotted at coastal wetlands and freshwater habitats. In winter, very few individuals remain in the UK, with only a handful (typically fewer than 10 birds) observed each year.  This was probably the bird also seen at Elmley. Wryneck at Swalecliffe The Wryneck is a migratory woodpecker that passes through the UK during its spring and autumn migrations between its breeding grounds in Europe and Asia and its wintering areas in Africa. It is now a rare visitor in the UK, primarily seen on the south and east coasts. The Wryneck no longer breeds in the UK, and very few, if any, are present in the country during winter.
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