Hanging Out with Takahe

T2 and Puffin browsing

Last night I had the job of standing for an hour by the takahe hangout and talk about them to a large group of IT people who were in Zealandia as part of their conference. They had an hour in the valley before heading back to the Visitor Centre for dinner supplied by the Rata Cafe.
Being IT people they were very interested in the tracking devices both takahe wear. An aerial is easily observed poking out from their backs. They are attached by a little back pack. They wanted to know frequency levels, how often the batteries on the back packs were changed, their range etc. They discussed the idea of using microchips and how the range would be less. I was not able to contribute much to this conversation but learnt a lot. The takahe obligingly stayed close nearby, pottering about browsing and keeping a close eye on me (especially my hands) just in case I produced food.

Takahe browsing - note aerial for tracking and monitoring

After the hour was up everyone headed back for drinks and I caught a ride back in Te Ara Kawau, the little electric powered boat that is available for rides when the weather is right. We went close to the bank and observed the little black shag colony not visible from the path. There were ten nests this year during the breeding season.

Te Ara Kawau