Tuturiwhatu were back today

For some weeks I have not seen any Tuturiwhatu (New Zealand dotterels) at the feeding ground of Southend of Snells Beach. Because they nest in the open with little more than a scrape in the sand, they are vulnerable to dogs being walked, which are allowed to run free. Scofield and Stephenson do say that tuturiwhatu have adapted and are no longer dependent on isolated beaches, and being left alone. 

Both parents incubate the eggs for four to five weeks, and the chicks fledge after five to six weeks. Perhaps this time scale explains the gap since I last saw any tuturiwhatu (there were four today). I got a photograph of one of the others and am fairly sure that it is an immature bird, supporting the idea that they are now back to ordinary feeding, only with a couple of rapidly growing chicks.

Tsuken and family left this afternoon. My first extra is of them at the airport, about to enter the restricted area. They are now back in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney. I've also added a photo of some of the Kuaka feeding en masse this afternoon. It can be easy to not see them; their colouring almost matches the environment.