Easter Sunset

6.10pm tonight, from the front verandah, to the background of the cricket concerto.

Click on the arrow below to get the full effect with sound:

End of Summer

I looked up from my work today and noticed there are a few red leaves on the scarlet oak.

Although the crickets are still hard at it, desperately wanting to mate before it gets too cold and their chirps wind down like clockwork, I suddenly realised that our long New Zealand summer is drawing to a close. A small, fleeting sweet-sad wave of happy nostalgic loss washed over me. It felt like the brown grass under paddling pools, crunching the leaves, and first frosts.

There's a tune - 'Theme From a Summer Place' - that perfectly portrays the feeling I had today. I was three or four years old when it was first released.

The Kakapo

Before I leave New Zealand parrots, I'd like to mention our wonderful Kakapo (kar-kar-poor).

Kakapo is a very large parrot, and before humans came to NZ, may have been the most abundant bird in the New Zealand bush.

Its unusual mating call is a deep, distinctive sub-sonic boom that can travel several kilometres. Kakapo is flightless, very rare (there are fewer than 150 left), nocturnal, intelligent, inquisitive and friendly. They are forest-dwelling, with moss-green plumage and have a strong sweet, musky scent - an attribute that in earlier times made them especially easy to track down for food. And also sadly, irresistible to dogs.

In early days, Kakapo were so abundant that bushmen said you could put the pot on and wait for one to walk into the camp. They were so plentiful they were killed by the hundreds and used as dog tucker.

It may be the world's oldest living bird.

Image from Stuff.co.nz

Now, a special programme has slowly increased Kakapo from the low number of 50, back in the 1960's, to about 150 now. They are probably still considered on the brink of extinction. Here are a little group being hand-reared.

What could be cuter than Kakapo chicks?

However, one good thing, as this clip from a BBC film shows, Kakapo males seems still very determined to increase Kakapo numbers. Albeit, in misguided directions.

(Warning: This following clip is rated R 16.)

You can find out the latest Kakapo news on the website of: The Kakapo Recovery Programme

Eastern Rosellas

At the moment here seems to be a consistent group of the introduced Eastern (Australian) Rosellas around the garden most days. Today they were out the back, perhaps eating the fruit from the strawberry tree. They are so colourful and noisy, they are quite a pleasant distraction from my painting. I try not to like them, because of course they don't belong here in New Zealand, and probably displace some endangered fauna. But they are very appealing as they chatter like monkeys up in the trees. They know all about me, and watched me carefully as I took these photos.

What?? A Kea at a Mount Maunganui Beach property?

Yesterday I happened to read an article in the local rag that reported that a local resident, a Mr Kuipers von Laude, noticed what he identified as a Kea (a New Zealand native parrot species) sitting in his camellia hedge. He realised what a rare occurrence this was, and phoned the local Department of Conservation, who apparently (the article said) said that it was quite common to see Keas in this part of the country.

Now, as even YP knows, Kea are alpine parrots, and can be found in the South Island, although fossil evidence suggests they lived in the North Island up to 10,000 years ago.

Unless this Kea is 10,000 years old, I suggest it is actually a Kaka, possibly flown over from nearby Mayor Island (where there is a breeding programme in operation).

What do you think? The bird on the left is the one from the Mount Maunganui hedge in the article, the top right is an image of a Kea, and the bottom right, a Kaka.

And finally, Here is a link to the kinds of activities Kea - very intelligent and curious parrots get up to in the South Island mountainous areas. I'm very happy for them to stay down there, thank you very much!

Eye Candy Day 44

Dijea's Photo Challenge. 'Portrait'

I'm cheating a bit today because it's a painting not a photo, so not strictly meeting the parameters of the challenge.

This is the portrait of my sister Jane that I recently completed. I especially tried to capture her lovely clear, pale complexion.

It was meant to be for her 50th Birthday, but has taken me two years to do. I was especially

hard on myself because I know this lady so well, and wanted to express the spontaneous honesty that she always shows, and also the joy for life that she has recently found with her new partner as well as, of course, getting a good likeness.

This was my main reference image: