A great side-effect of the timing of our Turangi Tongariro trip in search of Whio/Blue Duck ducklings was that the Kōwhai were in full bloom. The beautifully saturated yellow blooms are irresistible to Tui and gave endless photo opportunities.
Kōwhai (Sophora spp.) are busy trees with many twigs so are challenging when looking for clean backgrounds. This makes choosing images to process a bit easier as many are just too messy to bother with.
Some interesting facts about Kōwhai. Unsurprisingly kōwhai is the Māori word for yellow. It is also a member of the pea (legume) family and the blooms and seed pods show this relationship.
The Kōwhai bloom is widely considered New Zealand’s national flower but is not officially recognised as such.
Photos with Nikon D850 and Nikon 500mm f5.6PF
