Following the recent BirdsNZ Conference we spent a bit of time in Taranaki. Our first stop was at Rotokare Scenic Reserve, a site chosen for one of the post conference field trips. Rotokare is located 12km from Eltham and was a short detour from our destination near Whanganui. Surrounded by a predator proof fence it is essentially a mainland island so hosts a number of New Zealand endemics that usually suffer predation from introduced mammalian pests.

The tracks were quite busy with BirdNZ members but also plenty of birds. The Toutouwai/North Island Robins were especially abundant allowing for a variety of images. Bush bird photography is always challenging due to low light levels and this was especially so with the heavy cloud cover on the day. Dense supplejack tangles made clear views difficult to achieve so success was even sweeter.

Tieke/North Island Saddleback were vocal but hard to see in the dense growth, Hihi/Stitchbird even harder to get a clear view of. Near the end of our walk we had a good group of Tieke around us for a while and managed a couple of keepable images.

The above bird posed long enough in a supplejack tangle to grab focus through a gap and the following bird was engrossed in foraging on the ground enough for me to find a brief clearish view through the stems and foliage.

We saw many other birds including Pōpokatea/Whitehead, Mātātā/Fernbird, Pāteke/Brown Teal and Titipounamu/Rifleman but no opportunities for any decent images. A Korimako/Bellbird allowed an opportunity.

Rotokare Scenic Reserve is definitely worth a visit. I would be keen to camp over a couple of nights to explore the opportunities more fully. Like all bush locations, the photography is challenging and a good reminder of the advances in digital imaging that allow us to use high ISO and mitigate the noise in processing.

Photos with Nikon Z9 and Nikkor Z 400 f4.5 VR S