Fantail Amongst the Rapids

Another Sunday afternoon and another Fantail shot!

I don't know what it is, but I'm drawn to these fascinating little birds perhaps more than any other. The stream over the fence has risen today in response to the persistent rain that has fallen here in the valley over the last 36 hours. I'm not sure it's raining up on Mt Herbert though - snow is more likely with cold temperatures up on the summit - and as a consequence the river is not as high as it would be given the precipitation.

It doesn't seem to bother the Fantails though. The usual collection has been flittering around near the confluence of the small creek opposite the house. I'm guessing their usual prey of midges and small flies is on the move in the rain, and like any apex predator (hard to think of them like that!) they are there to take advantage.

In between sorties I managed to get this shot of one of the Pīwakawaka resting on a twig caught in the swollen stream.

It's easy to think that these cute little birds are easy to photograph, but any Kiwi blipper will definitely tell you otherwise!! Like most fantail shots, this meant being patient and waiting for him to land in exactly the spot where I had prefocused. After about 10 minutes of watching their behaviour, I noted that this spot was one of about five around the streamed where they frequently landed. The rest was just waiting for the right moment.

Why not take a peek in large?