Favoritos de benackerley

Exquisite Alborn skink located while population monitoring! I have obscured its location considerably.🦎

Photographed a pair at a nest while on The Forty-Fours Motuhara during albatross research.

Leopard Seal attacking and eating juvenile Adelie Penguin

Big flock eating pine nuts from pine cones. Second day in a row.

Continuing bird. Great birding this morning with @islandnaturespotter

with Hawkes Bay tree weta, Hemideina trewicki, a common association in this area.

Absolutely stunning P. h. anatokiensis! Shell size approx. 70 mm. 🐌

in pitfall

I think it's a male, but not too sure. Location obscured

Seen same ight as @euanbrook observation, but is different gecko then his ob

Lakes Skink, but Inat doesn't have it as a separate species, this one appears to be rather melanistic.

Oligosoma aff. chloronoton "West Otago"

Location obscured, new record for this species.
Gravid female.

Seen flying at a distance over Porangahau River. I initially thought it was a kahu, but seemed blacker, with a different wing beat, so I photographed in order to ID later.

Presumably escapee from nearby property

This bird was found on Muriwai Beach then successfully rehabilitated but the NZ Bird Rescue Trust. The identification was confirmed as a juvenile Lesser frigatebird by bill measurements and markings.

Chick, taken with trail camera.

First NZ record - https://www.birdsnz.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Notornis_32_4-1985-pp322-323.pdf

Seen a few years ago on the West Coast.
Had notably less distinct markings than a bar-tailed, and had notably dark underwings.

A rather lucky find!
Was slightly too small and slender to be a Caspian Tern, and had a black beak.

Seen on track in day time

A bit off course

Nest with 3 eggs

Morepork with nest

Distinguishing features incude forked tail and fingered wings, different colour to harrier. Known vagrant.

First walk after the shift to Level 3, and this karearea flew up the ridge to settle on the stump in front of the top seat and check me out for a minute or two. One of two.

Juvenile tern, not sure which? Second photo shows size relative to Caspian

Waitati stream. Have never seen one here before.

Mid-day sighting wit balmy, muggy weather.

A nice surprise when I went for a Godwit count this morning. First time I've seen them on this beach.