Willowbank Wildlife Reserve

Last night I saw the movie Bohemian Rhapsody. It was okay. I thought the beginning went too fast. The band just got together, then they're touring the US. The actor who portrayed Freddy was great in the musical sequences, but his face was pretty devoid of emotion. Maybe Freddy was that way, so maybe it's accurate, but the facial nuances were really needed to support a script that left so much unsaid.

How better the welcome myself to New Zealand than to go see kiwis (the bird not the fruit)!?! There are some other endemic species here as well, a couple of birds and a really ancient type of what looks like a lizard but is not actually a lizard. More like a tiny dinosaur.

Kiwis are nocturnal, so the video and two pics (the photos have been lightened) we're under red light conditions. One pic is with it's snout down a feeding cup, the other with his snout pointing forward. My hand on the statue shows size. Adorable!

I've also had great fun with the almost tame eels, hand-feeding them raw meat and even slightly lifting them out of the water. They're slimy tubes of solid muscle. The ducks, geese, and swans are also very tame, not so much to pet but definitely to hand feed. The wallabies are also very friendly, gently eating out of your hand. The hefty hogs, sonorous sheep, and greedy goats are not so gentle. Lol. And there's a small herd of small deer. I'm in heaven.

So long [for now] and thanks for all the KIWIS. ✌️Read more