tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post1949656894176901623..comments2023-08-22T21:11:59.355+12:00Comments on pohanginapete: Dangerpohanginapetehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-87665757580979386882007-12-29T10:59:00.000+13:002007-12-29T10:59:00.000+13:00Thankyou, Beth, and compliments of the season to y...Thankyou, Beth, and compliments of the season to you also. Owls are fascinating and beautiful birds; so strange and evocative. And the way they fly... "floating" is an apt word.pohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-68793028196523833382007-12-28T10:41:00.000+13:002007-12-28T10:41:00.000+13:00Hi Pete, Merry Christmas and thank you for the gif...Hi Pete, Merry Christmas and thank you for the gift of these wonderful photos - I really feel like I'm sitting close and experiencing the spirit fo these birds along with you. May they live long and raise many chicks - and may you survive any future attacks by fierce little riflemen! My treat today was seeing a large owl as we drove back up to Montreal; it was hopping/floating to a different treeBethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15829062955658284450noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-16119506926155047832007-12-24T11:27:00.000+13:002007-12-24T11:27:00.000+13:00Zhoen, New Zealand's offshore islands are crucial ...Zhoen, New Zealand's offshore islands are crucial refuges for many of our endangered species. We have far too many species on the brink of, or declining towards, extinction, but at least we can protect them more easily on some of those islands. So many countries don't have that option. Moreover, some of the species surviving on the mainland are far more at risk than they appear, because they're pohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-30811057829412649282007-12-24T04:24:00.000+13:002007-12-24T04:24:00.000+13:00Beautiful bird portraits. Beautiful land. What a g...Beautiful bird portraits. Beautiful land. What a great place to spend Christmas. I hope you have a wonderful one. :)vegetablejhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15449145190852647832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-61683312496998419022007-12-17T11:25:00.000+13:002007-12-17T11:25:00.000+13:00Made me think of Douglas Adams description of the ...Made me think of Douglas Adams description of the little penquin (Blue?) that survived on an island by reproducing very, very slowly. Change has not been kind to the species as a result. <BR/>Thank you for the peek into your experience, one I will never have in person.Zhoenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03515663141425057088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-12864256912672867342007-12-17T06:06:00.000+13:002007-12-17T06:06:00.000+13:00Polona, I'm pleased they might provide some warmth...Polona, I'm pleased they might provide some warmth for your winter. Thankyou :^)pohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-52873891654897355212007-12-17T03:26:00.000+13:002007-12-17T03:26:00.000+13:00each time i come here i'm reminded how much i enjo...each time i come here i'm reminded how much i enjoy your photos and words. wonderful!polonahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12631341810150848122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-59195379785619419112007-12-16T17:49:00.000+13:002007-12-16T17:49:00.000+13:00Thanks Bev!Thanks Bev!pohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-92098866238170983232007-12-15T14:15:00.000+13:002007-12-15T14:15:00.000+13:00Wonderful photographs of the Whio. I can well ima...Wonderful photographs of the Whio. I can well imagine how it must feel to have a good selection of keepers!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-89824400816085701142007-12-15T08:48:00.000+13:002007-12-15T08:48:00.000+13:00Robb, thankyou. It really is remarkable how well t...Robb, thankyou. It really is remarkable how well these birds are camouflaged — particularly the chicks. The markings on the chicks' heads mimic the fractures in the rock astonishingly well.<BR/><BR/>Nigel, delighted you're able to enjoy the Ruahine through these words and photos. Every place has its own beauty, but it's a lot easier to recognise it in places like the Ruahine; a lot harder in somepohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-9776426921347493502007-12-14T21:49:00.000+13:002007-12-14T21:49:00.000+13:00Amazing photos Pete! As Robb says, we have seen W...Amazing photos Pete! As Robb says, we have seen Whio many times in the Ruahines' inner rivers, but I have always had my Nikon with a 50mm lens which wasn't up to the task (and even if I was better prepared, I couldn't come close to taking outstanding photos like yours). A beautiful bird in its sadly shrinking beautiful environment. You capture their essence with your camera and the attendent Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-86386686407803347172007-12-14T17:58:00.000+13:002007-12-14T17:58:00.000+13:00Kia ora Pete. I keep sneaking back to look at thos...Kia ora Pete. I keep sneaking back to look at those photos again. They are really beautiful. By far and away the best capturing of the Whio I have seen, and with the chicks as well. That is one sight I have not seen. You nailed the perfect combination of the colours of the Whio blended to the environment, makes me wonder how many I have missed as well. Thanks again for the vicarious trip to the Ruahineshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09398484733805119294noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-43886717775690624602007-12-14T14:30:00.000+13:002007-12-14T14:30:00.000+13:00T.R.: Wow! That says such a lot in so few words. T...T.R.: Wow! That says such a lot in so few words. Thanks, and welcome :^)pohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-46487094936268213772007-12-14T10:05:00.000+13:002007-12-14T10:05:00.000+13:00Wow! Now that is a blog!!! Beautiful.Wow! Now that is a blog!!! Beautiful.TR Ryanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00595967532391171082noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-86845265835320787622007-12-13T22:06:00.000+13:002007-12-13T22:06:00.000+13:00It's tough, but I'm managing to get over the titip...It's tough, but I'm managing to get over the titipounamu attack, Anne-Marie ;^D<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the thoughts. It's a delight to be able to share at least some aspects of these marvellous times — and I agree wholeheartedly about the importance of small things.<BR/><BR/>Mmmm... tomato and bacon sandwich...<BR/><BR/>RR: Crikey, I'll have to be more careful what I write! Maybe it's a good thing pohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-75121452988520903192007-12-13T21:50:00.000+13:002007-12-13T21:50:00.000+13:00The colours of the birds, the rocks and the water ...The colours of the birds, the rocks and the water are so beautifully matched and so realistic. I felt, while reading your post, that I, too, was crouched under a rock ledge, doing a bit of delousing and keeping an eye on my chicks.<BR/>The people who imported rainbow trout from Scotland all those years ago (hopefully) did it with the best of intentions.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-72385236331537384702007-12-13T19:04:00.000+13:002007-12-13T19:04:00.000+13:00Pete, I love the way you've written this. Well wor...Pete, I love the way you've written this. Well worth all that struggling!<BR/><BR/>I am so glad you had this memorable experience - and that we can experience it vicariously through you. Even if, as you say, we're not experiencing the actual event.<BR/><BR/>On my journey up the Whanganui River a while back I made a short detour up the Manganui-a-te-Ao River but unfortunately didn't see any whio.<Anne-Mariehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06769343406187885283noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-79151143363602119372007-12-13T16:56:00.000+13:002007-12-13T16:56:00.000+13:00Theriomorph, thanks. One of the difficulties I had...Theriomorph, thanks. One of the difficulties I had preparing this post was trying to choose the photos — of the 300-odd, a fair proportion are keepers. Glad I don't have to pay for film and processing.<BR/><BR/>Robb, the Ruahine rivers are perhaps the most beautiful I've ever seen, anywhere, and whio seem to epitomise the sense of those rivers. Very glad the photos evoked such strong memories forpohanginapetehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11463792721091291063noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-83494315059317725372007-12-13T12:22:00.000+13:002007-12-13T12:22:00.000+13:00Wonderful post Pete.Wonderful post Pete.Duncanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12182951711946882353noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-70881003386994573822007-12-13T12:07:00.000+13:002007-12-13T12:07:00.000+13:00Stunning photos Pete! When that first shot popped ...Stunning photos Pete! When that first shot popped up on my screen it took my breath away. I have seen many Whio along the way in the Ruahines and have never bothered taking a photo as I know I couldn't come close to capturing the moment and no one would understand nor appreciate a poor photo. To me they are the soul of the Ruahines and when I close my eyes and recollect my treasured encounters Ruahineshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09398484733805119294noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14677243.post-35406596058093712812007-12-13T11:56:00.000+13:002007-12-13T11:56:00.000+13:00Millennia of evolution taught you to sit still, ke...<I>Millennia of evolution taught you to sit still, keep quiet. The predators then came from the sky or haunted the waters. Fly, and you’d be struck down; swim and your chicks would be swallowed. Now, you still sit on your rocky shelf, almost invisible save for that bright bill, and wait for the danger to pass by. You sit still on your rocky shelf as the stoat approaches and the water drains away.Theriomorphhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04968544085442387475noreply@blogger.com