28 January 2014

Titipounamu (rifleman) on the Tunupo track, southern Ruahine range


Today I walked up the Tunupo track as far as the DOC sign at about 1400 m. On the way up I stopped for a snack but quickly picked up the camera again when several of these delightful little birds (New Zealand's smallest) appeared. They're extremely frustrating to try to photograph, because they're seldom still for more than a second and they're usually gleaning invertebrates among a tangle of branches.


[28 January 2014, Olympus OM-D EM-1, Panasonic 100–300 mm at 205 mm, ISO 400, 1/1000 at f5.0]

All content © 2014 Pete McGregor

7 comments:

Ruahines said...

Kia ora Pete,
He appears to be well fed and cherubic. I was surprised higher up a few months ago along there at the number of dead rats along the trap line. That is a nice walk though, long and rambling but consistently upwards. Trust you are well e hoa.

Barbara Butler McCoy said...

Oh! I gasped when I saw this - it's such a wonderful image. It is definitely one of my favorites of your bird photos. The light, the greens, the branches, the 'motion' in the background. Perfect ;0

pohanginapete said...

Kia ora Robb. It's an excellent walk. If I just want to get to the tops, I prefer the steeper but quicker Knights Track; however, the Tunupo track offers a lot more if you're not in a hurry.

Barbara, thank you :^) If you liked this, you'd love the real thing. They're about as cute as birds get.

Zhoen said...

Oh. My. Something mesmerizing about this one, such a sense of place.

pohanginapete said...

Pleased you like it, Zhoen.

Lydia said...

Ah,this is so beautiful, Pete.

pohanginapete said...

Thank you, Lydia :^)