Birds of a feather - Amazing Footage - Very Noisy

The seagull colony was overwhelming, clattering wings, shrill warnings, the odour of "very much bird poo" and a ground swell of flying feathers and fiery parents.

From our vantage point on the bridge we saw the "white blob" of seagulls off in the distance, they were clustered together and protected from intruders on a small island created by a split in the river.

It was a beautiful day to get wet so we parked the car and set off on an adventure consisting of multiple river crossings, wet shoes and track pants, slippery rocks, laughter and sensational discoveries.

The closer we came to their colony, the more the birds swooped, screeched, circled and dive bombed. The intensity of the scene was electrifying and the volume of the seagulls was beyond comprehension.

We carefully made our way amongst the nests, Andrea captured some incredible photos, we held some baby chicks and then departed, making sure nothing was disturbed or damaged by our brief visit.

Every day has hidden beauty, if we just take a moment to slow down and look a little closer.

How many people drove over the bridge that day or that week and never slowed down enough to even hear or sense that mother nature had a "main event" going on, "just down the river!"

AndreaEL:
Andrea is recognised internationally as a talented photographer and lover of birds, so this was a very special day for her.
AndreaEl's Portfolio: http://www.redbubble.com/people/andreael

Hardwick Enterprises:
It was not our intention to film on this particular day, so we were not carrying the professional video camera. We used our Sony Xperia X10 Android phone to capture the video footage for the day and were pleasantly surprised at the quality of the images and the sound (especially considering the tiny microphone built into the phone).
Well done Sony!

Hardwick Enterprises Services: http://www.hardwick.co.nz
Keith Lightfoot's New Book: http://www.thankgod.co.nz

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• keith lightfoot
• andreael
• hardwick enterprises
• discovery channel
• new zealand
• birds
• nesting
• seagulls
• sony xperia x10