A 17-year-old in Tākaka is ruffling feathers in the conservation community because of his talent for ornithology, or bird-spotting — he’s already considered something of a national expert.
Bradley Shields has a gift. He has already identified 152 native birds in the wild, but his recent find was particularly special.
The spotless crake, or pūweto, is a highly secretive bird and almost never caught on camera. But Bradley managed to do what no one has ever done before — prove that it has a home in Abel Tasman National Park.
“I was able to eventually see it just down here in the mud, pretty cool find,” Bradley told Seven Sharp’s Julian Lee at the spot where he pictured the bird.
Project Janszoon has been helping restore an area of Abel Tasman National Park to native bush.
Source: ©1 NEWS
