Critically Endangered
The third in the black mini-series
This is the rarest of the wading birds. They are described in text as entirely black, but most of the photos of them I saw showed their wings having an iridescent blue-green hue. I have seen a huge variety in how many are left in the wild. In May 2020 though, there were supposedly 169 adults in the wild. In 1999 there were only 4 pairs. They are Endemic to New Zealand. There are so many threats to their survival, from ferrets and hedgehogs to feral cats and invasive weeds and of course, habitat degradation.
I don't know that I could live somewhere that I didn't have easy access to the beach. Something about being there is so relaxing and you seem to feel your stress getting drawn out from you with the waves. The Oregon coast is not usually the bright blue many people associate with the beach, more a comforting blue grey. For me it isn't any one part, it is everything. The sound masks my tinnitus, the waves are almost hypnotic to watch, it is always good hot cocoa weather, and generally we are away from the every day struggles. This picture I took while at the beach and it to me sort of just shows the blurring of anxiety that comes for me when I am there. For the technical minded, I've included the settings right below the picture if you want to try the same thing.