16. A kea, taking interest in my cord, Arthur's Pass National Park, South Island, New Zealand

Keas are large (over a foot long) mountain parrots that live at high altitude in the South Island. They are dull green with bright red and a little blue under their wings. The name (as with many birds) comes from the sound they make, a loud cry of "keeeeaaaaaa". They are incredibly playful and curious, and they aren't afraid of people (many birds aren't afraid of people in NZ, becuase before the arrival of humans, birds were the top of the food chain, there were no mammals). They walk with a very humorous waddle, or a bounding hop. Keas are attracted to anything brightly colored or with a "chewy" texture, and they have razor sharp claws and beaks. They will commonly destroy such things as the various rubber and plastic fittings on a car (including the windshield gasket), backpacks, motorcycles, and anything that looks "fun" or might resemble food.
There was a night I spent camped in a circular valley where I spent all evening and the next morning shooing about a dozen keas away from my bright blue tent. Like a gang of local hooligans out terrorizing the visitors, they would land in the grass and bushes about 30 feet away, surrounding me. They would very slowly and casually wander closer and closer as I went about making dinner or packing things away. When they got too close I'd chase them all away, yelling and waving my walking stick at them. They'd just fly in a group around the valley, then land again 30 feet or so away, and start advancing agaain. Fortunately they went away when the sun went down.
This kea in the photo caught me by surprise. I knew there were keas around, so I left my camera (the disposible kind) on the table while I was a few yards away setting up my tent or something. I soon heard a thump, and looked over to see that the kea had thrown the camera about 10 feet away from the table, and was getting ready to have fun with the cord.