Fondly referred to by some as “Dots’, New Zealand dotterels are appealing little shore birds, their sharp ‘cheep’ call signalling their constant alertness to possible danger. They need to be watchful. Dotterels nest on the ground, where the camouflage of their colouring gives some protection against aerial predators but not against mammals. Camouflage isn’t much of an obstacle to predators with a strong sense of smell.

The NZ dotterel is endemic to New Zealand and their numbers are threatened and yet they often live and breed in close proximity to human communities. On Omaha Spit in Rodney District, north of Auckland, David Stone, a trustee of the Omaha Shorebird Protection Trust, estimates that the closest housing is now only about 80 metres away from the Shorebird Sanctuary. That’s close – very close! Sections in the adjacent subdivision have been sold and there is constant building activity.