1046 days ago

Friday Feathered Friend

Reporter Community News

Another wonderful image from Simon Woolf. It was taken on the Kāpiti Coast.

"This bird is believe it, or not, I believe is Black Tern! "The Black Tern is one of four marsh tern species found worldwide and the rarest in New Zealand, with one accepted sighting north of Wellington in 2022. When breeding it is a small black tern with grey wings. It is pale in non-breeding plumage (as was the only local record).
Like the closely related white-winged black tern, the black tern can be found in a range of freshwater and estuarine habitats. The nominate form breeds in Eurasia, migrating to Africa to winter, while the North America subspecies migrates to Central and South America" We now have at least three birds in New Zealand, as I spotted three individual birds with the flock of White Fronted Terns. So rare in NZ. Very rapt, and a great find."

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5 days ago

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The Riddler from The Neighbourly Riddler

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3 hours ago

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Vincent from Paraparaumu

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1 hour ago

February’s Weather

Murray from Paraparaumu

Along with most places in Central New Zealand, February 2026 in Kāpiti was its fourth summery month. It was sunny and dry although slightly cooler than usual.

Our daily average maximum temperature was 22.2℃, over a degree cooler than average, being the lowest in over 10 years. February 2025 was similarly cooler, as is this summer generally. As usual, eastern areas of Central NZ averaged a degree warmer, but our overall average mean temperature was again the warmest at 18.1℃.

Our equivalent of 18.25 sunny days was average for February. Rainfall of about 87mm was above the average of 60mm, but it mostly fell in two events separated by two long dry periods, with the second in the middle of the month associated with a strong wind storm that brought a much-needed 40mm.

As our March average temperature is 21.6℃ the chances of getting a fifth summery month are pretty high. Rainfall averages 50mm, but as we are getting more than the historic average these days, it’s likely we will exceed this.

Photo: Sunrise February 20

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