Seabank in Dundalk Bay, part 1

We had originally encountered Seabank in Dundalk Bay in early autumn 2022. Rosemary and I had just visited the small viking township of Annagassan for the first time and we decided to take the coastal route home.

The tide was almost full as we drove along the coastal road home and we could see hundreds of wading birds being forced closer up the beach alongside the road by the incoming tide.
Seabank obviously held heaps of potential for us and we made plans to return in the third quarter of winter when there would be the maximum number of over-wintering migratory waders present both in numbers and species. It was decided we would return early February and so it proved to be the case.

We arrived at Seabank early on a cold mid winter’s morning and we could see large numbers of waders, mainly Black-tailed Godwits and Light-bellied Brent Geese and once again being forced closer up the beach by a rising tide.

However, the light was not good for bird photography so we made our way down to the shoreline and waited for the light to improve.

We could see hundreds of birds while we waited patiently for the light to improve.

The worst mistake one can make in a situation like this would be to try and get close to the birds and scare them.
The tide was moving the birds closer to us and the light was improving by the minute.
All we had to do was sit tight, let the tide bring the birds closer to us and hope that no dog walkers came along the beach.

BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY IN JULY AT CARLINGFORD LOUGH

In our last post, we shared our walk around the coastal town of Carlingford. However, the main purpose of our visit was to do some bird photography in July at Carlingford lough. The shoreline of the lough near to Carlingford village is designated as both a Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive and an EU Special Protection Area that safeguards and maintains the habitats of migratory birds. It is part of the Natura 2000 network of protected areas and listed under the Ramsar Wetlands of International Importance.

For me this puts Carlingford on a par with my beloved Manawatu Estuary back home in New Zealand.

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Christmas trip for long tails 2020 Part 2: koekoeā paradise

System reboot and the apology

Last year I was to start the year off with blog posts containing images of birds, stories of adventures and images of New Zealand landscapes.
After my first post of our Christmas trip and promises of more to come, my readers ended up with nothing from me for an entire year.
Once again I failed to follow up with part two of our annual  Chrissie adventure.
I apologise for that but please let me explain.

Christmas trip for long tails 2020 Part 1:The Plans of Mice and Men

As I look back at 2020 it all seems so surreal to me now.
I honestly never thought the pandemic would last this long and rather naively thought the whole world would unite and synchronise against a common enemy and the virus would be defeated relatively quickly.
But here we are heading towards the end of January 2021 and there are more daily deaths being recorded now than when the pandemic first broke out.
However, the various vaccines developed in different countries give us hope that this year we will start to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Regardless, I hope this post finds my readers alive, kicking and full of wonderment towards our natural world and I pray that 2021 will be much better for us all.

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The Plans of Mice and Men

As my longstanding readers will know, each year a friend and fellow fanatical bird photographer Steve Richards and I take off for a few weeks each Christmas. I sleep in my tent and he in his customised 4WD Toyota.
We hit the road hard out, get up early each day and go to bed late. We do our best to come back to our respective homes totally worn out. It is not a holiday for us, its an opportunity to photograph birds we don’t see closer to home. Food, comfort and sleep become secondary issues.

How to photograph New Zealand tui

In this post, I’m going to give you a few tips on how to photograph New Zealand tui.
Most of the images used in this post are for sale so you can click on the image to see the full size and additional information.

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New Zealand tūī (correct Maori spelling) were once a relative rarity for those who seldom step foot in our forests and isolated coastlines.
However, in the last few decades, in many urban areas and even city centres, the tui has staged an amazing comeback.
The combination of pest control and the planting of native trees and shrubs by forward-thinking councils has provided food and safety for the tui.
Tui have taken full advantage and invaded to the point that now nearly everyone who has nectar-bearing trees in their back yard also has resident tui. Our city streets and parks are also alive with tui.