Following the poaka

Dreary grey morning with rain showers discouraged an early run. So mid morning, a couple of hours after high tide, I went to our beach and around to South End Snells beach to see what birds could be seen.

As always there were toreapango (variable oystercatchers) and poaka (pied stilts) on the flat rocks out from the headland separating the two beaches. Near the poaka was a single whitefaced heron. Although instantly alert to my presence, it tolerated me, until the poaka took their leave accompanied by much squawking and flapping of wings. The next time I moved, the heron decided it also would go, with a single disapproving and rather raucous cry.

I had the long lens on the camera, and I have cropped out excess sea and rock. So I actually wasn't very close.

Afterwards I have spent the day putting stuff from the office on the bookshelves in the library downstairs here at the beach house. Despite throwing much paper away, there is so much still. I chose to just get it on the shelves and leave looking through it until later. 

I enjoyed a quick look at a copy of a letter I sent to the Medical Superintendent 30 years ago. I think that I must have been a bit of a trial to the organisation; challenging the status quo.