In Waikanae near the estuary the Pied Shags appear to have claimed this macrocapa as their own. The side they have taken up residence on appears to be dead and the smell is rather ripe. I do wonder if the acidic smell has had something to do with the half-death of the tree.
As I watched I managed to capture some images of the parents coming back to feed their young.
They appear almost full size with most of their feathers having come in so I wouldn't expect them to be in the nest much longer. The fledglings can be determined by the spots on their bellies.
This one appeared to be rubbing his head in despair at all of the noise from the demanding babies, it was unclear if he had his own.
The bachelors had the right plan and were relaxing by the lagoons edge with some of the fledglings.
I like that last comment! Great shots.
ReplyDeleteWOW! Wonderful close up shots of these Cormorants. They seem to have bred well this year.
ReplyDeleteWonderful glimpse of the nesting routine. These pied shags look so much like cormorants, ecept the cormorants I have seen have a nesting island in the middle of water, not in a tree.
ReplyDeleteWonderful opportunity to see and then get these great shares~
ReplyDeleteI love the Pied Cormorants, they are pretty compared to the Cormorant I see here. Great shots!
ReplyDeleteHi!:) It's an impressive group. So many Pied Shags hanging out together in your first photo is a great find. Nice to see them in their nests too.
ReplyDeleteRegards.
Great photos! What a wonderful dynamic to capture with your camera!
ReplyDeleteHappy, healthy looking Shags. Nice that they have their own tree. :-)
ReplyDeleteTime to kick the kids out...they are too big to still be demanding food from poor Mummy..
ReplyDelete