Monday 8 June 2015

Pukekos after the rain

Well let me tell you, I am not going to mention how quiet life is again.
Since last week, when I mentioned the earthquake, we have had floods.


Not too bad at our property but bad enough to close schools, 
businesses and to set up  civil defense headquarters. 
The city was cut off north and south with some of the highways under water.
A lot of homes were flooded and one rest home had 
to be evacuated in one of the low lying suburbs.
Most of last week was spent in clean up mode
 for a large portion of the population.
 Really heartbreaking for some.


We stayed hunkered down at home with only a couple of leaks in the roof.
Everything in our little town is back to normal now but it will take longer in the city.

At the weekend we took a trip over to the local tip


Which is where I spotted some of our feathered friends in the distance. 
Pukekos! 
I had never seen them here before and was quite excited. 
My GKB said they are there quite a lot so he didn't know why I was so impressed.


Since I came down south to live I have only ever seen them beside the highway, 
in places you can't stop to watch or take pictures.


On the West Coast where I grew up they were a lot more common 
and wandered in the paddocks and were quite prolific.
Of course the ground was more swampy in a lot of places
and probably more to their liking over there.
It is rain forest country and can be quite a damp place, to put it mildly. 


As we were leaving we had to avoid hitting some of them wandering on the road.
And then...
around a corner and we came across this fellow bathing.


He was submerging himself up to his shoulders, 
getting up, shaking himself off and doing it all over again. 
We watched through the car window for a couple of minutes then my GKB 
decided to get a bit nearer and try to get a better pic. 
Well Mr Pukeko wasn't having that and climbed out of his bath
 and stalked away at a good old pace, for him, with my GKB in hot pursuit.


And that is why the final pic is a bit blurred.
No co-operation at all, can you see the frown on his face, haha.
If you would like to read a little more about the pukeko you can do so here

Have a good week,
Diana

25 comments:

  1. Hope you all see clear skies soon Diana!! Seems a lot of places are dealing with weather problems.

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  2. Hope the weather has settled down and no more flooding. So sad for those that got hit the worst. I have never seen nor heard of the bird, but they are definitely unusual. Thanks for sharing and I learned something new today!

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  3. I hope the weather improves for you and the water level subsides quickly. Cute birds!

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  4. Sorry to hear about all the bad weather and flooding.
    I've never seen a pukeko. He must have been really enjoying his bath. : )

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  5. I'm sorry you've had such bad weather too. I know you were happy to get out and what a great sighting. Such an interesting bird and fun to photograph! Enjoy your day sweet lady. Hugs, Diane

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  6. Dearest Diana, I am so sorry about the icky weather that you have been having, but I am so, so, SO glad you're safe and well. I hope this week brings sunshine and blue skies :)

    Thanks for joining Roses of Inspiration - you are a sweetie! Hugs!

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  7. So sorry to read that there are now floods to contend with; glad you and your GKB are okay though. I love pukekos; there's just 'something about them'...love your comments about the one having his bath interrupted! lol. I brought home a china pukeko last time we were over in NZ, to replace my first one that got smashed when the wind blew it off the table :-(

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  8. Hope you are all dried out now. I love pukekos but have given up trying to get decent photos of them. The paddocks are very wet and muddy here, I'd like a few more sunny days but it doesn't look like that is going to happen.

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  9. Good that the rain has stopped and everyone is drying out. Take care for summer is near and the weather is getting warmer!

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    1. Down here we're just heading into winter Sylvia but summer will come...eventually :)

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  10. I hope your weather is improving every day. I enjoyed your bird photos.

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  11. very cool birds - like a moorhen or gallinule. :)

    sorry about the flooding. texas and neighboring states just went through some of that, too.

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  12. There's a lot of rain coming down in that one shot. I'm sorry so many had problems with all the flooding. How neat to spot that bird, he did seem to be running away from you in that last shot.

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  13. So sorry you've had bad weather and hope it gets better soon.We here in Texas had major floods all over the state but doing better now that the rains have stopped.
    Your bird photos are amazing. Love the last shot as he is running to get away.
    Have a wonderful day.
    CM

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  14. What a weather nightmare. How cute to see the Pukeko bathing in the roadside puddle.

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  15. Thank you for visiting my blog. Love your beautiful header.

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  16. Nice series. Hope all is drying up some.

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  17. Hope the weather improves soon for you. Great fences and wonderful birds.

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  18. I hope the weather is better now, I love the cute Pukeko birds. Great post. Have a happy weekend!

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  19. Dearest Diana, so glad You are fine after flooding and earthquakes.I have been too busy for My own good-babysitting Grands full time. So sorry I have taken so long to visit with You.I love dropping by. The birds are interesting and look so grand.I also read the previous post and thought Your fruit find in the morning was amusing.I'll be back soon hopefully- Denise

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  20. Dearest Diana, so glad You are fine after flooding and earthquakes.I have been too busy for My own good-babysitting Grands full time. So sorry I have taken so long to visit with You.I love dropping by. The birds are interesting and look so grand.I also read the previous post and thought Your fruit find in the morning was amusing.I'll be back soon hopefully- Denise

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  21. Sounds like you are having a rough time of it all at the moment. Mother Nature is a force to be reckoned with isn't she? Do keep safe my lovely xx

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  22. So glad you are fine. Hope the weather improves for you. Blessings, Martha

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  23. Wonderful bird sighting! So sorry you have been having such bad weather! Hope things are getting better now.

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  24. To me, they are cute and weird animals. I find them exciting and interesting no matter how often they show up! We always point them out alongside the road.

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