Let me get close

S' younger brother arrived a few days ago from Melbourne. Both he and his wife have been vaccinated against COVID, Nevertheless, and despite being nowhere near the part of Melbourne where the most recent outbreak happened, they were told to self isolate and have a test. By this time, I had spent time with them and gone to work. They tested negative and are free to move around again. They will be here for nearly another two weeks, but their daughter and grandson almost certainly won't risk being caught here, or made to enter quarantine here or there, which will be sad.

A day spent mostly inside due to a biting wind which converted to hail, and heavy rain and high winds by early afternoon. Late afternoon (after all this IS [almost] Auckland), the sun emerged again albeit briefly and I headed down to have a run on the mudflats. I was greatly cheered by the ease  I felt and how many different bird species I saw in a short time.

Because I didn't trust the rain to not return, I took the Lumix and its waterproof bag around my waist. The magic worked, and I was not rained on. The lens in this camera is not as good as that in my Pentax, and my use of the pseudo-viewfinder to focus and frame is a little shaky. 

The wee Tuturiwhatu (New Zealand dotterel) was initially quite startled as this human thumped his way through the shallow water and on top of the sand and weed covered mud. However, it seemed to quickly accommodate to my presence when I stayed relatively still, allowing a number of photos. 

It has a small crab caught in the tip of its beak