• Tui ( prosthemadera novaeseelandiae) are endemic “native and unique” to New Zealand. They are found on the three main islands and belong to the honey eater family.
• Tui are a fully protected in New Zealand.
• The name Tui is derived from the Maori language with the plural being simply tui.
• Europeans who first colonised New Zealand called it the Parson Bird due to the tufts of white feathers on its neck that resembled a parson’s clerical collar.
• Tui contribute a valuable role in the pollination of many native plants and trees.
• Courtship takes place between September and October and the breeding season runs from November to January with the laying of three to four eggs.
• The female constructs the nest from twigs, grasses and moss.
• A tui’s diet is mostly made up of nectar fruit and insects.
• Some favoured food are native kowhai, puriri, kahikatea, new zealand flax, kaka beak, rewa rewa, rata, pohutukawa and other introduced trees such as strawberry tree, banksia, flowering cherries and bottle-brushes.
• Male tui can be very aggressive and will chase other birds including the much larger native wood pigeon or kereru , bellbirds, stitchbirds, other tui and silver-eyes.
• Tui are often seen on their own, in pairs or small groups. Large numbers will congregate around a plentiful food source.
• Tui have a reputation for being raucous and noisy as well as having a very unusual and distinctive call. Some notes are so high that they are not audible to the human ear whilst others are made up of whistles, groans, crackles, creaks, chuckles, chortles and wheezing to name but a few.
• Possessing two voice boxes means the tui can perform a wide array of vocalizations and have been known to mimic human speech.
• From the time of European settlement tui numbers decreased mainly due to the destruction of their habitat however in more recent times their numbers have increased and they are now considered secure.
• Today the main threats to the eggs and young of tui are other birds such as mynas and hawks, possums, feral cats, rats and stoats.
• Because the tui is much adored and admired many New Zealanders place food and sugared mix in their gardens to provide a back stop during the winter months.

You can check out the call of the tui here ….

I’ve changed the words a little of this great Pete Seeger classic.

For about the last six weeks or so I have missed seeing the tui on the feeders as they have been away nesting. Breeding happens from November through to January.

Their distinctive call can still be heard from early dusk till late dawn and they can be seen flying overhead but they no longer visit the feeders. During spring and summer other food sources such as nectar, berries, fruit and insects are more plentiful therefore man made inventions tend to be ignored.

As much as I miss their visits I know that come autumn they will stop by again.

Currently the feeders receive an occasional visit from a sparrow wanting a sweet drink but otherwise its rather quiet.

For all those people who have purchased a tui feeder don’t despair as the tui will return. When the weather changes for the worse and there’s less food about they will be back.

In the meantime click below and let the tui entertain you.

Whilst working in my workshop this afternoon my ears pricked up when I heard NewstalkZB talk back host Danny Watson announced that it was tech Tuesday. Tech Tuesday is an opportunity for ZB listeners to tell the rest of New Zealand about their new projects and bright ideas.

During my younger years I would ring talk back radio fairly regularly, however these days its only on the very odd occasion. My family may not agree but its probably due to the fact that I’ve mellowed and am no longer trying to change the world. The work shop radio is usually on quietly in the background as I create and construct my various projects, therefore I’m able to keep abreast of the news worthy issues of the day.

Some days it gets the chop as it can be repetitive and negative.

This afternoon when Danny announced the 0800 801080 number I quickly grabbed  the phone beside my work bench and dialed without thinking because marketing has been on my mind of late and this offer was just too good to miss.

“Welcome Rodney you’re the first caller through …

… what would you like to talk about ?”

“Um”  …  that’s a good question …

“Stay calm Rodney …  don’t  panic and blow it” … these were the thoughts racing through my mind.

Fortunately the station was about to break to the news so I had about five minutes to scribble down some main points and get my head together.

Obviously I wanted to get the most from my brief air time.

Considering this all happened on such short notice I feel I did okay but you be the judge as the conversation can be heard here.

As soon as Danny and I had said our good byes the office phone started ringing and the inquiries flooded in, it was pure magic.

How I would love to have that response every day.

Monday was a holiday but never the less I was up early as a busy day had been planed. For some months now I’ve been wanting to erect the second of three trellis I have leaning against the back wall of the garage. One is in the vegetable garden already but there’s two more that need to be put up.

Keen as mustard I set about getting the necessary tools and materials ready for the task at hand but just as I began digging the first hole for the support posts my mates the Tui’s started to drop by. Not only were the taking their fill of the sugared water from the feeder they were chortling away almost to the point of distraction.

Sometimes I’m easily distracted!

From what I could see there seemed to be three of them and they certainly weren’t put off by my presence as they were landing within just a few meters.

After watching them for about 30 minutes it was time to get back to work.  Erecting the trellis went with out a hitch so now there’s only one more to put up.

Now that I’ve successfully trialed the feeder and have made several improvements to it I’m happy and eager to market it. Within the last two days I have several enquiries so that’s promising.

One of the changes that has been made are the 4 sight holes on the front as before it was difficult to see the level of the sugared water mix. Another addition which will make installation much easier are the eye hooks on the roof as this now means it can be hung rather than being screwed down onto a post or something similar.

From the Tui’s point of view this second option is probably better and safer as the unit can be positioned well away from any predators such as cats.

Favourite Quotes:
Quality is remembered long after the price is forgotten. – Gucci slogan