A friend, near Manaia in South Taranaki, encountered, by chance, a ruru | morepork nest, 14 metres up in the side of a tree trunk. We decided to spend an evening out with her in this bush reserve and attempt some photos. It was also a chance to try out my new Canon R1 camera and test it in low light. The adult birds sleep nearby the nesting hole and soon after arriving we spotted them. It was mostly dark when the activity started, and the three chicks showed themselves at the entrance hole to the nest. It was a beautiful experience being with these birds, seeing the adults bring food to the nest, and hearing their murmuring type calls. It was so dark towards the end we could not see the birds with our own eyes, yet the camera amazingly could still grab a picture that was reasonably bright.
