You won't have been expecting another newsletter from me so fast, but we had a visitor this morning and I thought you'd be interested in the encounter.

At 7:30 AM we heard a dull thump downstairs.

This handsome Morepork had bounced off the glass and landed on the deck. 

It was dark outside, still pre-dawn - autumn is here and nights are already longer. The slightly concussed and confused Morepork (New Zealand's indigenous owl) took a while to recover. His feet weren't working and his eyes were shut.

Fortunately, during the photo-shoot it co-operated, liked the personal attention, posing in various positions, and admiring the view from the deck (!) before a silent departure on runaway: LAS RAMBLAS - Casa Nuestra.

Wow! What a moment! Nick in pjs, camera struggling in the low light, fabulous bird of prey needing attention. And then, 5 minutes later, a torrential downpour hit, reminding us that New Zealand is still in the grip of a big tropical weather bomb. 

And interesting to note: its feet were warm, says Nick. 

We often hear the Morepork when we're in bed at night. The male call sounds like the words: more pork. The Morepork belongs to the race of the Australian Boobook Owl and has adapted well to New Zealand conditions. 

This was definitely a once in a lifetime experience.

Thanks for reading up to here. My next newsletter will be coming to you in time for Christmas 2017.