Birds all over the world use a myriad of strategies to annoy and foil photographers. Here are some of the methods they may use.

New Zealand fernbirds/matata are the coolest and most frustrating little birds. I hadn’t heard of them let alone seen one until into my adult years. Most people living in New Zealand don’t even know they exist. They hang out in […]

I really like flax flowers with their variety of colours and shapes. Many of our native birds like them too – they are full of sweet nectar and kakariki will strip the whole flower heads and seeds. Spring and early […]

Kowhai flowers come into bloom, right when our native birds need a big energy boost for nesting after winter when food sources may have been more limited. Nectar feeders such as tui, bellbirds/korimako and even saddlebacks/tieke feast on the tasty […]

One of my favourite places to be in New Zealand is Tiritiri Matangi Island ecosanctuary. Years of largely volunteer effort have transformed a once bare, denuded landscape into a forested predator-free paradise teeming with birds and invertebrate life. Rare bird […]

Visit my new “Northland New Zealand” gallery for a look at some dreamy new images. Enjoy.

I’ve added a new gallery to my website – “Winter in the South Island”. Check out my selection of favourite images from a recent trip to the south by going to my galleries page. So stunning there at any time […]

The west coast of New Zealand has many wild and remote beaches less frequently visited than the popular and safer to swim beaches on the east. It is possible to walk these beaches without another person in sight for kilometer […]

Monarch butterflies have just been catergorized as “endangered” – two steps from extinction on the IUCN “red list”. Many of us have grown up captivated and delighted by the fascinating life cycle of these colourful insects. Who hasn’t been thrilled […]