a NZ short-finned eel swimming with some mallard ducks

Went to the park today to do some bird watching but got distracted by all the magnificent eels (called tuna in Māori) in the lake. Must have seen at least 20! #AoNZ #Whakaoriori

More info:
www.doc.govt.nz/nature/nativ...

Black swan (Kakīānau) couple at Queen Elizabeth Park, Masterton (mating 'dance' and beyond) #AoNZ #Whakaoriori #birds #Aotearoa #video 🪶🇳🇿 taken today

graph showing rain totals for the last 2 days. Each 12 hour period shows a smaller amount than the previous Total is 109.0mm

109mm now. But looks like the winds have shifted so it's mostly behind us now. #AoNZ #Whakaoriori

graph showing 74mm of rain since 6am 03 Dec 2025

We've had a lot of rain today and it's still coming down! Don't mind it as we can really use some rain this time of year.
#whakaoriori #AoNZ

a white faced heron in flight with a blue whispy cloud background

Saw about 5 of these this morning, but here's one. :)
White-faced heron aka Matuku moana at Henley Lake Masterton #Whakaoriori
#AoNZ #Birds #Aotearoa 🇳🇿🪶

view towards the Tararua Ranges at sunset

Just before sunset the other evening. #AoNZ #Wairarapa #Whakaoriori #NewZealand

That site is cool! We just found where our house is now, but bare land in 1963. Neat to see the small stream that still flows through it. #whakaoriori

Screenshot of the Merlin bird app recording an observation of a shining cuckoo

Heard our first shining cuckoo of the year today #birds #NewZealand #AoNZ #Whakaoriori

Heavy wind and hail

I know it’s winter but I wasn’t prepared.
#AoNZ #Aotearoa #whakaoriori #weather

tauhou and orange these birds love fruit!

a tauhou with orange. these wee birds love a bit of fruit!
#AoNZ #Whakaoriori #Aotearoa #NewZealand #birds 🪶🇳🇿

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a tauhou (silvereye) perched on a tree branch

this tauhou in our back garden is really a #borb :) #AoNZ #Whakaoriori #AotearoaBird 🇳🇿🪶 #waxeye #silvereye

a tauhou looks my way Usually you see these birds from the side, so it was fun to get a straight on look from this wee tauhou (silvereye) in our back garden

A tauhou (silvereye) looks my way

#AoNZ #Whakaoriori #AotearoaBirds 🪶🇳🇿

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a white black-billed gull looking at the camera just as it takes off.

a tarāpuka taking off! Love seeing this rarest of gull. 🪶🇳🇿 #AotearoaBirds #AoNZ #tarāpuka #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa

looking towards the Tararua ranges with a small amount of snow on top of the peaks. There is fog in the valley below with several colourful autumn trees

we knew it was cold last night, and this morning's scene of snow on the hills confirmed it! #AoNZ #Wairarapa #Whakaoriori #landscape #Aotearoa #NewZealand

So we've got a giant Poplar tree down, a big branch off a gum, a manuka broken in half, and an old (mostly dead) beech tree fallen over. How's the weather in your patch? #AoNZ #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa #Aotearoa #weather

Just checked our weather station. It's 26.3°C ! Why is it so warm?? Is good for drying the laundry, but still. #AoNZ #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa #Aotearoa

blood-moon-14Mar2025 Just past full at about 8:30pm NZDT. Moonrise was at 7:40pm. Had to wait until it was above our Eastern hills. :)

Blood moon at about 8:30pm NZDT. Had to wait a bit until it got above the eastern hills and the light layer of low clouds. #AoNZ #moon #eclipse #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa #NewZealand

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A little shag perched on a bit of wood in a lake. He has a yellow beak, white face and throat and black elsewhere, including his webbed feat and long tail.

A Little shag (Kawaupaka) in the "swan haven" section of Henley Lake in Masterton. #AoNZ #birds #Whakaoriori #kawaupaka #littleshag #Aotearoa

a juvenile black-billed gull looking at the camera with his beak wide open. Another gull is sitting in the distance behind him.

Another juvenile black-billed gull (tarāpuka) who can't keep his beak shut! :) #birds #AoNZ #Whakaoriori Really loving these juvenile gulls. Gives me hope for this endangered species! There were 17 gulls of which at least half were juvenile.

So I heard that Canadians are avoiding going south to the US at the moment. Seems they've all arrived here in Aotearoa New Zealand instead. #canada #goose #AoNZ #Whakaoriori

Fires at multiple Masterton churches believed to be suspicious Four churches were on fire overnight and three others targeted.

Grr. Disagree with religion all you want but no excuses for arson! #Whakaoriori #Masterton #kikorangi #AoNZ

www.rnz.co.nz/news/nationa...

rainbow in the valley

sometimes you're in the right place at the right time. (on our walk this morning) #AoNZ #Wairarapa #Whakaoriori

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(alt: looking into a valley with a full rainbow and blue sky and clouds)

twobirds a female pūtangitangi with a black swan

Just a couple of the water birds at Henley Lake here in #Whakaoriori (Masterton) flic.kr/p/2qMayLZ #AoNZ #birds

lake scene

It's quite peaceful at the lake these days

#AoNZ #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa #swan #birds

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Black Swan one of many black swans at the lake

One of the many Black Swans at Henley Lake here in #Whakaoriori ( #masterton ) #AoNZ #birds 🪶 #NewZealand

flic.kr/p/2qHcQtd (click through to view the non-cropped version!)

Mute Swan with cygnet Not sure I've ever seen a mute swan cygnet before. Plenty of black swan cygnets around, but probably only one Mute swan breeding pair at the lake.

alt-text: Mute Swan with cygnet floating in a small green lake. Not sure I've ever seen a mute swan cygnet before. Plenty of black swan cygnets around, but probably only one Mute swan breeding pair at the lake. #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa #AoNZ #birds 🦢🪶

flic.kr/p/2qGUTwa

Grass blowing in the breeze

At least it's nice outside. :) #Whakaoriori #Wairarapa #Ouwaka #Aotearoa #AoNZ

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About 100 Canada geese grazing on grass beside a lake

The Canadians are taking over! #AoNZ #Whakaoriori #geese #birds 🇳🇿

Happy New Year #Aotearoa! 9 degree windchill here in #Whakaoriori (summer? what summer?) Hope 2025 is treating you well so far.

orange day lilies

Rainy start to our Christmas summer holidays! But at least the day lilies are cheerful! #flowers #AoNZ #Wairarapa #Whakaoriori #Ouwaka