From November 2013 when the spring was still turning into summer and water was not that warm to swim, I did my first walks around Rotorua. Today couple month later I went out to have a swim on exactly the same lake... and what a good occasion to finally put these pictures up. This is Lake Okreka, it was a big waoooo moment when suddenly all this bird life was there, even small lookout huts for true bird fans.
Pukeko
As a very experienced bird watcher my conclusion is that most of Rotorua area birds are lacking vivid colours, preferring to dress in discrete black with small elements of other colour. And they are rather good at leaving swim beach evenly covered with bird dung - discovery from today.