{"id":16070,"date":"2022-10-16T07:49:10","date_gmt":"2022-10-15T18:49:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/?p=16070"},"modified":"2022-10-16T07:49:12","modified_gmt":"2022-10-15T18:49:12","slug":"pukorokoro-miranda-as-a-bird-photography-destination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070","title":{"rendered":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Kuaka\/Bar-tailed Godwit coming in to land on the P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda mudflats<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

There can be little debate that P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda<\/a> is one of Aotearoa\/New Zealand’s iconic birdwatching sites. As one of the major areas of feeding mudflats for Kuaka\/Bartailed Godwit and Red Knot at the Southern end of the East Asian Australasian Flyway it hosts thousands of international migrant shorebirds over the summer. In addition it hosts local New Zealand migrants such as Wrybill and South Island Pied Oystercatchers that move between our major islands during the course of the year. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/a>
A wedge of Wrybill\/Ngutu pare cleave the air<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

For birdwatchers this provides a fertile habitat for impressive sightings with the the constant possibility of something unusual amongst the crowd. Circumstances ideal for birdwatching don’t always translate into good bird photography locations. I have been visiting P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda for years and over that time have found it less and less appealing for photography. I have written on this before but a recent visit has made me reconsider the situation so I thought I would share an update on my thoughts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The biggest change with time has been the inability to access low shooting positions. Previously it was possible to arrive early in the morning and belly crawl to the edge of the ponds (through mud and bovine output – there were still cattle grazing the reserve then) and wait for the sunrise to reveal what was there. If conditions were right there was opportunity for lovely intimate low level images in early light (even if the price paid was 6 months of pain from a pinched nerve in the neck due to prolonged awkward posture). It was also possible to access the edge of the shell bank to achieve low angles over the mudflats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nowadays the reserve is a very different place with no wandering cattle and humans restricted to well formed paths and hides. This is a vastly better habitat for the birds but limits some photographic opportunities. It is tempting to focus on lost opportunities but in fact others open up and the mark of a good photographer is adapting to the opportunities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My latest visit was a stay of 2 nights and parts of 4 days spent in the reserve. Hopefully sharing a few of the images I made will help convince you that P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda remains a very worthwhile bird photography destination. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Matuku\/Australasian Bittern<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The highlight of this visit was the opportunity to photograph a Matuku\/Australasian Bittern. My previous views of the species have been distant or in rapidly departing flight so it was lovely to spend some time watching this individual hunt in relatively open habitat.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Matuku\/Australasian Bittern with captured tuna\/eel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The next most exciting subject for me were the good numbers of Kuruwhengi\/Australasian Shoveller. They were in courting mode with the males making repeated short flights giving multiple opportunities for flight images.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Kuruwhengi\/Australasian Shoveller male in flight<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Kuruwhengi\/Australasian Shoveller are arguably our most beautiful ducks but can often be quite wary. It has taken me a long time to get photos that I am happy with let alone flight images. Calm conditions also gave a chance for an image for my Birds on White<\/a> series.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Kuruwhengi\/Australasian Shoveller male on white<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The fact that the ponds are known as the Stilt Ponds hints that this is a good venue for Pied Stilts. While the low angle shots are no longer available there remains plenty of opportunity for flight shots or minimalist images with reflections on smooth backgrounds.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Poaka\/Pied Stilts<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Good numbers of Matuku moana\/White-faced heron also offer flight shots and clean wading images.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Matuku Moana\/White-faced Heron<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Kotuku\/White Heron is always a possibility. On this occasion it made an appearance when we dropped in briefly while passing. Being a very relaxed individual that was completely unfazed by passing pedestrians on the path, it gave time to explore a few options. I suspect it is the same bird that I have photographed here a number of times in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Kotuku\/White Heron<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

One of the delights of wandering around at P\u016bkorokor\/Miranda is the sound of Kairaka\/Skylarks. There are so many that it sounds as though the sky is singing because on looking up the birds are too small to easily see. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Kairaka\/Eurasian Skylark singing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

There are plenty of options to photograph them singing in flight, dropping down into the vegetation and foraging in the salt marsh. While not easy targets, P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda is the best venue I know for photographing this species. <\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Photo<\/a>
Kairaka\/Eurasian Skylark foraging in the salt marsh vegetation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

So in summary, how does P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda stack up as a bird photography destination? Having lost some of the options previously available and having, as a result personally felt a bit disappointed in it as a bird photography destination, my recent visits have restored my opinion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are plenty of opportunities with a variety of migrant and resident species despite the loss of the sought after low angle images. There are opportunities at both ends of the day with afternoon light being good from the hides based on the Firth (or a car hide on the road for the Bittern!) and the morning light great from the hide on the eastern side of the Stilt Ponds. As with any destination, investing time is optimal to getting the most from it. Conditions of light and tide vary daily and make a huge difference. Individual birds come and go as illustrated by the Kotuku\/White Heron who was absent for the 3 days when we were staying but popped up next to the path when we passed by a couple of days later when the reliable Bittern was nowhere to be found. Having said that it is still well worth dropping in for a brief visit. My recent Kotuku\/White Heron images were the result of dropping for half an hour as we had a bit of spare time while waiting to meet relatives for a meal nearby. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda<\/a> is a brief detour if travelling up the North Island to Auckland and well worth adjusting your schedule for. If you have more time I would advise booking in<\/a> to stay a few days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photos with Nikon Z9, Nikkor Z 800mm f6.3 VR S with the Nikon Z 1.4x teleconverter used for some<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination. Birding destinations aren’t always ideal for bird photography. How does P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda shape up?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16071,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[982,3,29,178,19,1001],"tags":[542,578,26,25,220,725,1074,1078,245,539,144,247,1015,221,869,983,609,608,603,1079,1081,1080,1076,541,1077,427,1075],"class_list":["post-16070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bird-photography","category-birds","category-new-zealand","category-opinion","category-travel","category-wildlife","tag-bar-tailed-godwit","tag-bird","tag-bird-photography","tag-birds","tag-birds-in-flight","tag-birds-on-white","tag-bittern","tag-great-egret","tag-heron","tag-miranda","tag-new-zealand","tag-new-zealand-bird","tag-nikkor-800mm-f6-3","tag-nikon","tag-nikon-z","tag-nikon-z9","tag-nikonnz","tag-nz","tag-nz-birds","tag-pukorokoro-miranda","tag-pukorokoro-miranda-naturalists-trust","tag-pukorokoro-miranda-shorebird-centre","tag-shoveller","tag-skylark","tag-white-heron","tag-white-faced-heron","tag-wrybill","entry","has-media"],"yoast_head":"\nP\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination - WildLight Photography<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination - WildLight Photography\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"WildLight Photography\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-10-15T18:49:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-10-15T18:49:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"683\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"tony\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"tony\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"tony\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5cf44f50ed633ae6f6256fd8d79241f0\"},\"headline\":\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-10-15T18:49:10+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-10-15T18:49:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070\"},\"wordCount\":1078,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/08\\\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1\",\"keywords\":[\"Bar-tailed Godwit\",\"bird\",\"bird photography\",\"birds\",\"birds in flight\",\"birds on white\",\"bittern\",\"Great Egret\",\"heron\",\"Miranda\",\"New Zealand\",\"New Zealand bird\",\"Nikkor 800mm f6.3\",\"Nikon\",\"Nikon Z\",\"Nikon Z9\",\"NikonNZ\",\"NZ\",\"NZ birds\",\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda\",\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda Naturalists Trust\",\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda Shorebird Centre\",\"Shoveller\",\"Skylark\",\"White Heron\",\"White-faced heron\",\"Wrybill\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Bird Photography\",\"birds\",\"New Zealand\",\"opinion\",\"travel\",\"Wildlife\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070\",\"name\":\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination - WildLight Photography\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/08\\\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-10-15T18:49:10+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-10-15T18:49:12+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5cf44f50ed633ae6f6256fd8d79241f0\"},\"description\":\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/08\\\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/08\\\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":683,\"caption\":\"Kuaka\\\/Bar-tailed Godwit coming in to land on the P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda mudflats\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/archives\\\/16070#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"P\u016bkorokoro\\\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/\",\"name\":\"WildLight Photography\",\"description\":\"Nature Photography by Tony Whitehead\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tonywhitehead.com\\\/wildlight\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5cf44f50ed633ae6f6256fd8d79241f0\",\"name\":\"tony\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/fcc09a0c3018fb7aab77c8bc477d9f59884f7573178b1a329fb88b10779b4f62?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/fcc09a0c3018fb7aab77c8bc477d9f59884f7573178b1a329fb88b10779b4f62?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/fcc09a0c3018fb7aab77c8bc477d9f59884f7573178b1a329fb88b10779b4f62?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"tony\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination - WildLight Photography","description":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination - WildLight Photography","og_description":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination","og_url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070","og_site_name":"WildLight Photography","article_published_time":"2022-10-15T18:49:10+00:00","article_modified_time":"2022-10-15T18:49:12+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":683,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"tony","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"tony","Estimated reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070"},"author":{"name":"tony","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/#\/schema\/person\/5cf44f50ed633ae6f6256fd8d79241f0"},"headline":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination","datePublished":"2022-10-15T18:49:10+00:00","dateModified":"2022-10-15T18:49:12+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070"},"wordCount":1078,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","keywords":["Bar-tailed Godwit","bird","bird photography","birds","birds in flight","birds on white","bittern","Great Egret","heron","Miranda","New Zealand","New Zealand bird","Nikkor 800mm f6.3","Nikon","Nikon Z","Nikon Z9","NikonNZ","NZ","NZ birds","P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda","P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda Naturalists Trust","P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda Shorebird Centre","Shoveller","Skylark","White Heron","White-faced heron","Wrybill"],"articleSection":["Bird Photography","birds","New Zealand","opinion","travel","Wildlife"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070","url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070","name":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination - WildLight Photography","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","datePublished":"2022-10-15T18:49:10+00:00","dateModified":"2022-10-15T18:49:12+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/#\/schema\/person\/5cf44f50ed633ae6f6256fd8d79241f0"},"description":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","width":1024,"height":683,"caption":"Kuaka\/Bar-tailed Godwit coming in to land on the P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda mudflats"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/16070#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda as a Bird Photography Destination"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/","name":"WildLight Photography","description":"Nature Photography by Tony Whitehead","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/#\/schema\/person\/5cf44f50ed633ae6f6256fd8d79241f0","name":"tony","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fcc09a0c3018fb7aab77c8bc477d9f59884f7573178b1a329fb88b10779b4f62?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fcc09a0c3018fb7aab77c8bc477d9f59884f7573178b1a329fb88b10779b4f62?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fcc09a0c3018fb7aab77c8bc477d9f59884f7573178b1a329fb88b10779b4f62?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"tony"}}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/BartailedGodwit-20220809-_NZ93982-DxO-web.jpg?fit=1024%2C683&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3ThZJ-4bc","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":10025,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/10025","url_meta":{"origin":16070,"position":0},"title":"P\u016bkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre – Arctic Migrants","author":"tony","date":"June 9, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"As mentioned in my previous post\u00a0P\u016bkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre is a top destination for birders wanting to see Arctic migrants during the New Zealand summer. The Bar-tailed Gowits\/Kuaka arrive in our spring after a non-stop flight of 12000km over 8 days from Alaska, the longest recorded non-stop flight for a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "birds"","block_context":{"text":"birds","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/category\/birds"},"img":{"alt_text":"Bar-tailed Godwits in early morning light.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Bar-tailedGodwits-DSC_5152-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Bar-tailedGodwits-DSC_5152-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Bar-tailedGodwits-DSC_5152-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Bar-tailedGodwits-DSC_5152-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":19690,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/19690","url_meta":{"origin":16070,"position":1},"title":"P\u016bkororo\/Miranda Godwits","author":"tony","date":"March 1, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"P\u016bkororo\/Miranda Godwits - preparing to depart for their Northern hemisphere breeding season. Last chance to see them before spring return","rel":"","context":"In "Bird Photography"","block_context":{"text":"Bird Photography","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/category\/bird-photography"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Bar-tailedGodwits-20260222-NZ9_8451-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Bar-tailedGodwits-20260222-NZ9_8451-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Bar-tailedGodwits-20260222-NZ9_8451-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Bar-tailedGodwits-20260222-NZ9_8451-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":19746,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/19746","url_meta":{"origin":16070,"position":2},"title":"More Miranda Birds","author":"tony","date":"March 22, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"More Miranda Birds - while the migrant birds are the big draw at P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda, there are many others to see too","rel":"","context":"In "Bird Photography"","block_context":{"text":"Bird Photography","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/category\/bird-photography"},"img":{"alt_text":"New Zealand dotterel\/T\u016bturiwhatu in flight over exposed mudflats","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/NZDotterel-20260222-NZ9_6273-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/NZDotterel-20260222-NZ9_6273-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/NZDotterel-20260222-NZ9_6273-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/NZDotterel-20260222-NZ9_6273-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":19818,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/19818","url_meta":{"origin":16070,"position":3},"title":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda Day Trip","author":"tony","date":"April 12, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda Day Trip - massed flights of migrant shorebirds","rel":"","context":"In "biology"","block_context":{"text":"biology","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/category\/biology"},"img":{"alt_text":"Flock of godwits and knots in flight","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bar-tailedGodwitsRedKnots-20260304-NZ9_1199-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bar-tailedGodwitsRedKnots-20260304-NZ9_1199-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bar-tailedGodwitsRedKnots-20260304-NZ9_1199-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bar-tailedGodwitsRedKnots-20260304-NZ9_1199-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":18345,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/18345","url_meta":{"origin":16070,"position":4},"title":"A Short Notice Visit to P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda","author":"tony","date":"August 18, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"A Short Notice Visit to P\u016bkorokoro\/Miranda - every visit is different and special","rel":"","context":"In "Bird Photography"","block_context":{"text":"Bird Photography","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/category\/bird-photography"},"img":{"alt_text":"Photo of T\u016bturiwhatu\/Banded dotterel in early morning light","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BandedDotterel-20240805-NZ9_7772-NEF-DxO_DeepPRIME-XD2-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BandedDotterel-20240805-NZ9_7772-NEF-DxO_DeepPRIME-XD2-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BandedDotterel-20240805-NZ9_7772-NEF-DxO_DeepPRIME-XD2-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/BandedDotterel-20240805-NZ9_7772-NEF-DxO_DeepPRIME-XD2-web.jpg?fit=960%2C640&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10016,"url":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/10016","url_meta":{"origin":16070,"position":5},"title":"P\u016bkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre – Skylarks","author":"tony","date":"June 2, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"I have finally had a bit of time to catch up on some image processing from last year so the next few posts will cover a trip in November that included stops at\u00a0P\u016bkorokoro Miranda Shorebird Centre either side of visting Waipu in Northland.\u00a0P\u016bkorokoro Miranda is best known as a site\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "birds"","block_context":{"text":"birds","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/category\/birds"},"img":{"alt_text":"Two Skylarks flying - not often you would get 2 in the frame with 1050mm equivalent field of view","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Skylark-DSC_3928-web.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Skylark-DSC_3928-web.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Skylark-DSC_3928-web.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Skylark-DSC_3928-web.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16070","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16070"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16070\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16071"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16070"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16070"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16070"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}