Queen Charlotte Sound and Blumine Island

With our departure from the South Island approaching, we were trying to knock items off our lists.  Jen had a stronge desire to see the very elusive and endangered Yellowhead and Orange-Fronted Parakeet (native birds).  So we arranged for a Picton-based nature tour boat to drop us off on Blumine Island for a hour or two (predator free and home to these birds).  Most of the time is spent on a boat going up/down the sound.  Fairly rich with wildlife, they are a worth a visit.

Some seals on the hunt.
 



Cormorants (shags).




Here is a king shag (largest species) which is found only in the sounds.


Australian Gannets.  Check out that blue eye shadow.






A few Hector's dolphins made appearances, but they are way too fast for us.

On the island, several trees were fruiting, so a large number of Kereru  (wood pigeon) were going about their business.






The largest member of the pigeon family, these birds play a critical role in native forests.  The seeds of most podocarps here are too heavy to disperse in the wind, and too large for most birds to pass them undamaged.  With the Moa hunted to extinction, only the Kereru can spread the seeds of these trees in its droppings.


A few weta boxes were along the track. Members of the weta family (something akin to a cricket) are the heaviest insects on the planet.  These smaller members are sleeping the day away in their man-made holes.  Predation by introduced mammals has dramatically reduced their numbers, but on predator-free islands like this one, they can be found in just about any dry nook or cranny. 


These guys are about the size of my thumb.  Pretty beefy for an insect.




We saw a good variety of other native birds, but the Parakeets and Yellowhead evaded us.  With our ride on its way, we headed back to Picton.


On the ride back were offered some local wine and mussels.  Neither of us are wine drinkers, but we did try some vinaigrette-soaked, smoked, green-lipped mussels.  These mussels are a NZ delicacy, and are grown in farms all along the sounds. They have a different flavor, and the smoking method made them a bit chewy for my taste.  Jen couldn’t handle more than a nibble, I managed a whole one.