Flame Dance nectarenco

Bellbird taking nectar from the redhot poker (Kniphofia uvaria Flamenco)
by Bronwyn Hegarty, 2018
Flame Dance nectarenco

Did you know I was watching?
as you sucked, quietly
Did you know I was clicking?
when you leapt from flower to flower
I was delighted to catch you in the act
Did you know that?

Green sheen against red
my heart was still as you landed
stopped for a while to drink
heart beats pounding  
Did I miss the best pose?
before you flew back into the tree

Did you know how many shots I took?
when you flew in and clung to each flower
close shots, long shots, testing the new camera
while you took in the sweetness of the red hot poker
a short lasting flower but so sweet.

You took advantage of the sweet nectar
I exploited your closeness to my window
to try out the zoom lens and the depth of field
gaining confidence as you drank
oblivious to my joy
watching behind glass

Thank you......

Kōrimako aka bellbird, Anthornis melanura
olive songbird with curved beak
a southern hummingbird
extracting copious nectar hidden to me
finding the last drop in each bulbous petal
before flying away, full on summer's bounty.

Did you know I am still waiting
behind glass
for your return
next summer?
Camera poised
more confident now
to work the lens
and take the winning shot.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Old Fashioned Rambling Rose

Image
Traditional Rambling Rose by Bronwyn Hegarty 2020   She loved this rambling rose it symbolised her kind of order Smuggled in her bag from Wales smiling innocence at the border. No sniffer dogs back then. Now it grows in my garden deep pink double petals open to the sun Spreading a wondrous scent tickling memories of our Mum. She will love it when she sees the photo. No, she won’t remember the wildness how she cultivated a garden from here and there Propagating her own nature reserve of sorts cutting, replanting, sharing the fare. Insisting I fly home with plants in bags of dirt. The colourful chaos grew too big in the end and we helped her move to a manageable space We took what she gave, keeping it light not liking to see the change in her face. Old fashioned rambling rose, shared, love remembered. Bronwyn Hegarty, February 2020
Read more

Kokako why did you leave?

Image
Kokako - Image by Manu Bird from Pixabay Kokako why did you leave? Kokako! Why did you leave?  slipping away without a sound monogamy did you no good nor your song of defense they came anyway People with their ship rats, stoats, weasels, feral cats  hunting was easy too friendly, unwary  feeding on the forest floor nests invaded, eggs taken Male and female inseparable singing of love until  sold to the highest bidder - collectors, museums - saving you from yourself It makes me shudder that money speaks to take those with a unique voice a 2008 extinction Kokako declared null and void  So ecologically naive, they said I ask, you or them? but now labelled as data deficient one sighting has brought you back one, two, three stay free beautiful manu this world is not for you!
Read more
Image
Three Trees by Bronwyn Hegarty, 2017 Three Trees Walking fast, walking past, a stark and tangled beauty against the moist sky Three trees Grey on green almost unseen as life's heaviness crushes me I stop to look, a moment taken from the wrangle in my head Smooth bark and windswept leaves, stand as protectors of the lees. Protect me dark honey trees, a nthelmintic, anti-bacterial M ānuka , kahikātoa , red mānuka, tea tree , Leptospermum scoparium Good for wood, building, spears - a direct jab to the heart of it all Long-standing, guarding with the wisdom  of years spent watching and waiting. Raggedy tag trees, so hard and strong, giving hidden power Nondescript leaves, sweet and good, a once precious tea Sugary sap rising with the lengthening light Strengthening my eye for the pending fight, a life situation An earth vibration.
Read more