Yellow-eyed penguin

Today's the day ...................... to watch wildlife

Just as there are days when you are hard-pushed to find anything to blip - there are other ones when you are spoilt for choice. Today was one of the latter. We went on an organised trip to look at the some of the wildlife that is to be found on the Otago Peninsula to the east of Dunedin. It's a very special place - and so is its wildlife.

We started by watching albatrosses using the force of the wind to glide above the cliffs at Taiaroa Head right at the end of the Peninsula. It is there that you find the only breeding albatross colony in the world based on a mainland.

We went on to see spoonbills, black swans, white-faced herons, pied stilts, oystercatchers, a kingfisher, pukekos, spur-winged plovers, paradise shelducks, Steward Island shags and a whole host more.

But the prize of the day for me would have to go to this yellow-eyed penguin that appeared out of the waves, waddled up the beach in true penguin fashion and disappeared somewhere up the grassy cliff.

Complete magic ............................