On Wednesday I posted a photo of the beautiful kowhai tree flowers in my garden. They were just waiting for the feasting to begin and suddenly it did. Tuis have visited the tree regularly all week, supping on the nectar. The Tuis are delirious with joy over this; their very favourite food.
Tuis are larger and heavier than blackbirds but swing through and around the slender branches on Kowhai trees with acrobatic ease as they harvest the bounty using their nicely curved beaks.
Today the majority of flowers look like this and the grass is gradually becoming littered with spent pieces of flower.
I am fortunate that across a fence on the reserve there is another Kowhai tree which is now providing another sumptuous feast for the happy, well fed Tuis.
As well as the air whirring at times as the Tuis swoop in or across the garden to feed, they also fill the air with their wonderful unique songs. It is a special time of the year right now.
ordinarygoodness 
The tuis are certainly giving your kowhai a good working over! How lucky you are to have them so close. The nearest kowhai to me in town are at least a block away.
I have been nurturing our tree in the hope that it would flower well and attract the lovely Tuis. We have several other self-sown kowhais in other parts of the garden but they have yet to flower prolifically. Perhaps next spring there will be even more of a feast for the Tuis.
We also plant for the birds. It’s so much fun to watch them 🙂
Thanks Judy, you are correct about the fun and satisfaction in watching the birds. So many of our native birds have been or are still endangered so we all need to do our bit to boost their food supplies and native habitats.
Lovely photos, both of the flowers and the tuis!
Thanks Jo. I have a camera with a better zoom lens on my “wish list”…..we’ll see! I am really enjoying the Tuis this year.
Reblogged this on Tuis in my garden.