I met these two beautiful Pied Shags while walking the last day of Abel Tasman Great Walk. They were relaxing and drying their wings in the sun. It was such a pleasant sight that I sat down on the beach not far from them and just looked at them for about 15 minutes.

Pied Shags are mostly silent and they make noise only when nesting. Then they make gurgling sounds and guttural croaks. They nest in small colonies in a trees which grow on cliffs, laying eggs in January to March and July to October. The clutch of three to four pale bluish-green eggs is incubated for twenty five to thirty three days. The chicks fledge at 47 to 60 days old and are fed by the parents for up to eleven weeks after fledging. Their nests are usually large platforms made from sticks and seaweed. They eat mostly fish such as smelt, mullet, perch, flounder and eels.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.