Blue Duck Project - Waihaha Valley

I spent Christmas Eve and early Christmas Day up the Waihaha and Mangatu valleys helping a DoC Blue Duck project by attending to some 80 mustelid/rat traps in the area with my son David, and his friend Celina.  In the Mangatu valley there was extensive pig rooting damage in places but the local pig hunters caught three pigs during the time we were there.  They left a pig head on the track into Waihaha hut so I purloined the cheek muscles off it on the way out.  It was good to come across a group of four blue ducks in the Mangatu Stream - one adult and three younger but well grown ducks.  Made the trip more worthwhile.  We were back in Pukawa in time for the Xmas get-together.  The pig cheeks went well on the barbecue.

Blue Ducks on Mangatu Stream