Description
Back in the 1860s, when corsets were tight and moustaches were waxed, a curious idea fluttered across the minds of the Acclimatisation Societies of New Zealand: What if we brought a little piece of Britain to these wild southern isles? Not tea or crumpets, mind you, but birds. Familiar birds. Birds that sang of hedgerows and home.
And so, in 1862, a small flock of European Greenfinches boarded a ship bound for Nelson. These stout little adventurers, with olive-green plumage and chunky seed-cracking bills, were no strangers to long journeys. Nestled in crates and fed on seeds and sentiment, they sailed across oceans to a land they’d never seen.
Upon arrival, the greenfinches blinked at the brightness of the southern sun, fluffed their feathers, and promptly got to work. They took to farmland and gardens like they’d always belonged, cracking seeds with gusto and filling the air with their cheerful trills. For the settlers, their presence was a balm; a melodic reminder of home, echoing through cabbage trees and flax.
Though they were the largest of the introduced finches, they weren’t brash. They simply settled in, made themselves at home, and multiplied. Today, they’re a common sight across the country, flitting through hedgerows and perching on fence posts, still cracking seeds with that unmistakable bill.
And while they may not be native, their story is stitched into the patchwork of New Zealand’s ecological history; a tale of nostalgia, adaptation, and the curious ways humans try to bring a bit of home wherever they go.
Female Greenfinch perched with dignity of England past on an old manuka branch
Camera Settings
- ƒ/8
- 1/1600
- ISO 2500
- EV -0.7
- FL 500 mm
Location
Upper Hutt, New Zealand
Print Size & Specs
The Female Greenfinch
Limited Edition Photo ~ By Tony Stoddard
Medium Print:
Paper Size (A2) 420 x 594mm
Edition Number 15
*Unframed
Shipping
Please allow a minimum of 4 working days from printing to shipping. Photos are printed to order, signed, and numbered.
For print safety, larger prints will be shipped in a tube. Tracking details will be emailed as soon as your order is ready to ship.
Fine Art Print
Each limited-edition photo fine art print is signed and numbered.
Photos are archival pigment prints on Fine Art Smooth Cotton Rag 330gsm. Professionally printed by: Print Art – Fine Art Imaging
Helping to support our native birds
A portion of every print sold will be donated to The Nest Te Kōhanga, a wildlife hospital that’s dedicated to caring for New Zealand’s native species since 2009.
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