It's been a busy year so far, with an expedition to China and several extra contract jobs. Which means I don't really have anything to share from those. Oh, and we bought a house and moved into it as well. I did not appreciate how much time that can take up!

But the new location (Stillwater) is a small coastal settlement within the greater Auckland area. Coastal doesn't quite capture it however. Stillwater is by the estuarine part of a river, while the actual beach itself, is about a 30 minute walk from our new house.

One of the appeals of the beach is home to a number of tūturiwhatu or NZ dotterels (Plover or Dotterel family). This is a small shore bird, and threatened species, endemic to New Zealand. Now I'm not a serious bird photographer, more a recreational one. I enjoy taking photos of birds. And the small tūturiwhatu are a species I find enchanting. I also appreciate that within about 30 mintes, I can be in the same area as a threatened native species.

Spotting the birds is a little tricky at first. They're small and they blend in well with the beach. But once they start moving and you get attuned to spotting them it becomes easier. Sometimes you can just sit and lie down and they come very close to you anyway. I got some pics I liked.

#1 Keeping Low

#2 Fluffy!

#3 Wing stretch

#4 Wings!

For those of you interested in the technical side of things, these were taken with my Sony a1 (in silent mode) and 100-400mm GM lens.

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Tūturiwhatu at Te Hāruhi

Among the dotterels