Hearing tests

I can't help wondering if that is what this duck and her six charges were after. They crossed the road heading away from North Shore Hospital this afternoon. Mother stayed on the footpath as the young ones abruptly made a dash across the road, and only set out when they were fully committed to their dash. No cars were coming in either direction, and it was (in the end) a perfectly safe exercise.

I left them to it and went into Bar Italia to get a coffee to take away in my new Keep Cup. While waiting for the barista to make the coffee, I looked out the door and saw the seven walking firmly past and heading for the audiologists at the other end of the building.

I have purchased a new bird recognition book; Birds of New Zealand: a photographic guide. Paul Scofield and Brent Stephenson. They have provided an excellent table to try and distinguish between the introduced Mallard (Rakiraki) and the native Grey Duck (Parera), and the hybrids. These are clearly NOT pure bred parera. However, they appear to me to show more features of the hybrid than of pure rakiraki.

Mother (leading now that it's safe!) has neither a slate grey bill (parera) nor a yellow-orange bill (rakiraki). The bill of the hybrid is grey-yellow. The white bar in front of the purple speculum (from the rakiraki) appears narrower than 5 cm, and therefore suggests hybrid. Rakiraki legs are yellow-orange; parera legs are grey-brown, and the hybrid grey-yellow. Mother's feet seem to have grey on them. The facial stripes are not clearly two definite black stripes (parera), nor a single narrow eye strip (rakiraki). It seems part way between.

I surprise myself. Only 18 months ago, these would have been just ducks.