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| The kereru in the cabbage tree -top left |
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| The kereru hanging from a spray of cabbage tree seed heads. |
Today one of the neighbour's children came over and asked if he could collect grass for his guinea pigs as 'we don't have much grass, and you've got lots.'
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| The beautiful colouring of the kereru |
I decided it was time to weed the garden. It was a mild autumn day making very pleasant weeding conditions. Totally absorbed in the task I was suddenly disturbed the sound of wings then a noisy crash landing in my ti kouka or cabbage tree. Looking up I spied two lovely fat kereru or wood pigeons. They started to feed on the sprays of seed heads, balancing their heavy bodies precariously on the thin stems. They were intent on feeding and not concerned by my presence so I was able to watch them to my heart's content. They have such large bodies and little heads. Their colouring is beautiful. Their head, shoulders and back are an iridescent greeny colour tinged with a bronzey red. Their chests are snowy white and their beaks and claws are bright red. They are protected which is a good thing as it is almost as if they have a great white bulls eye on their chests making them an easy target.
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| Close up of a kereru |
Until recently they were a rare sight in Wellington but possum culling has worked wonders and now they are a regular sight in some suburbs. The Australian possum vies with the kereru for the same food, and will also eat their young if they get the chance. Kereru can be seen sitting on overhead wires on the roadside and if you are lucky you might see their wonderful swooping flight patterns in the early morning especially during spring. You always hear them as they fly overhead as their wings make a noisy squeaky sound.
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| Kereru are large birds that tend to make heavy landings |
They are endemic to New Zealand and the only native bird able to eat whole many of the larger seeds of our native trees and therefore serve an important service to our forests dispersing seeds. They are the only bird that can suck up fluid. All other birds have to lift their heads to cause liquid to trickle down their throats.
They can over indulge on fruit which then ferments in their crop, causing them to become drunk and disorderly. They are clumsy birds at the best of times so when they are under the influence they need to be protected from themselves until they sober up.
The pair in my garden were the most civilised of visitors however. They quietly took their fill of ti kouka seeds, then gracefully departed, winging their way to a stand of bush on the opposite side of the valley.
I continued weeding and after a couple of hours it was beginning to look a little less of a guinea pig heaven and a little more civilised itself.
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| Kereru are now protected - a good thing as they are very visual and thus and easy target . |
Here are links to a mini series on kereru:
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