joknight_nz's Identifications

A group of 8 Scaup heading quickly downstream. They turned the corner where the flows come together in picture 3, where they were mildly harassed by a male mallard, who then left them in peace. I didn't approach further as they were acting very shy.

After manual control in 2019 of pampas, ginger, woolly nightshade, tree and chinese privets, wattle, moth plant, Japanese honeysuckle, ivy and blackberry in the surrounding 10 x 5 metres, some lower branches of this big cherry were partially severed to release the native regen developing around it) karamu, totara, kohekohe, ti kouka). The following year many suckers developed on large above-ground roots all around the big cherry. They were similarly partially severed, repeatedly and annually, though one year the suckers attained heights of 1-2m before being suppressed.

This year the suckers have all been suppressed at 5-50cm H. Each photo shows a different part of the root system and its suckers.

Some suckers are flowering, with white petals. A few white or very pale pink flowers are evident on the main tree, and others may have fallen already in recent high winds.