James Ford, Avian (ANIMAL 2021)

A selection of birds native to New Zealand. The Hihi (Stitchbird) and North Island Robin were captured at Zealandia Ecosanctury, one of the few places in NZ Hihi can be found. The North Island Robin, while declining, is a somewhat common sight for hikers, as they hunt for insects in leaf litter disturbed by passing people or animals. Weka, flightless birds which grow to about the size of cats, are a common sight in certain areas of NZ. This weka chick was one of the many weka which attempted to steal my food while walking the Heaphy Track over Christmas. If I didn't know better I would have thought someone tried to cross breed a kiwi and a seagull.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.