A unique nectar feeder — Written by Te Korowai o Waiheke Team Member

The heat of another clear day beats down on me. I am surrounded by harakeke, kōwhai, pōhutukawa and pūriri which shake with the movement of feasting birds. It’s a nectar feeder’s dream.

Tūī, captured by Charlie Thomas

Tauhou hop between kōrari stems and revel in the sweetness of each deep red flower. Soon, the unmistakable sharp swoop of tūī wings clears the branches. The iridescent shimmer of green and blue shines like shallow water on a sunny day, the colours best seen when the sun shines directly on them. The turquoise birds jostle from flower to flower, the pounamu green now caked in golden pollen. 

Tūī have a specially designed brush tongue which allows them to drink the nectar and honeydew with ease. They burrow their heads deep into the flame-coloured petals of the harakeke and emerge with their face bridled in bright orange dust, the stiff branches swaying with each long-legged bounce. The first breaks of a dawn chorus on Waiheke are the unmistakable cracks of a tūī warming up to awaken the valley. With their dual voice box, tūī can produce more sounds than your average sparrow, even some that the human ear is unable to hear! Often you will see tūī with their mouths open but no sound coming out, this is because their vocal range extends outside of the range we can hear.

Their white poi feathers brush the edge of each flower that is hurriedly approached. With the return of the kākā, the tūī becomes a missile aggressively lunging at the clumsy parrots. The notched feathers at the tip of his wings whir with every determined flap, but the kākā is unphased and munches away. As is with all great spots on a sunny day, you have to be willing to share…but today that is not the case. The tūī moves on to the next sun drenched tree to enjoy another buffet of nectar.

— Written and captured by Te Korowai o Waiheke Team Member, Charlie Thomas.