#expeditionguide

It’s easy to launch when there are winds racing up the cliffs! Just open your wings and go... Today I’m winging my way to the Chathams to help out with a seabird translocation project! I’m gone for around ten days, with no phone and no internet. Enjoy these beautiful light-mantled albatross while I’m gone. Enderby Island #birdventurenz #subantarctic #expeditionguide #newzealand #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #albatross #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #ocean #nikonnz #nikond500 #seabirdscience #wilderness #adventure #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder @nikonnz @heritageexpeditions #wildernessculture #conservationphotography #conservationphotographer https://www.instagram.com/p/B8R2ixFJOTF/?igshid=1jet742wr0v7g

There’s a mixture of power and panic in the way penguins exit the water, launching themselves through the surface to land on kelp-cushioned rocks. Snares crested penguins, Northeast Island, Snares #birdventurenz #subantarctic #expeditionguide #newzealand #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #islandlife #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #ocean #nikonnz #nikond500 #seabirdscience #wilderness #adventure #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder #penguin #penguinsofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/B8MflVOpElh/?igshid=1vro8y9o80iyk

I love the subtle iridescence that Auckland island shags have, which turns their black feathers blue and purple in some lights. ⠀ ⠀ Enderby Island⠀ ⠀ #birdventurenz #subantarctic #newzealand @heritage_expeditions #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #albatross #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #expeditionguide #wilderness #adventure #crackingshag #shagadelic #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder https://www.instagram.com/p/B8Ew33MJG4O/?igshid=13rrv0419tam0

Southern royal albatrosses are like clouds that have decided to tuck themselves into the tussock, sheltered from the wind. ⠀ Campbell island ⠀ #birdventurenz #subantarctic #expeditionguide #newzealand #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #albatross #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #ocean #nikonnz #nikond500 #seabirdscience #wilderness #adventure #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder https://www.instagram.com/p/B7wshaXpeEH/?igshid=lijylto5m2nr

I'm back from the domain of albatrosses and penguins, that wildest of oceans down south. There's no rest for me as I'm straight back into fieldwork, but I hope to share some stories soon! ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ White-capped albatross⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ #birdventurenz #southernocean #subantarctic @heritage_expeditions #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #albatross #seabirdstory #waves #ocean #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #expeditionguide #wilderness #adventure https://www.instagram.com/p/B7MVWfIJ1y1/?igshid=yueowotojhpt

It's not all albatrosses and penguins! New Zealand's subantarctic is also home to a few cracking shag species, each endemic to their island. These Campbell Island shags breed only there - and the Auckland and Bounty islands each have their own endemic shags. They build nest cups of mud, sticks, seaweed and guano (of course) to protect their chicks, tucking them along cliff edges - sometimes nicely sheltered by vegetation, other times exposed to the elements of the roaring forties. ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ #birdventurenz #subantarctic #newzealand @heritage_expeditions #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #albatross #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #expeditionguide #wilderness #adventure #crackingshag #shagadelic #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder https://www.instagram.com/p/B7eMGP5pdJW/?igshid=y9evvz7gupr2

The subantarctic islands are the stronghold of our hoiho, but they’re still struggling. The changing climate is altering sea temperatures which is threatening many marine species with extinction as the food sources they rely on change - either moving out of reach of their foraging capabilities or changing the timing of their breeding cycles. Hoiho/yellow-eyed penguin, Enderby Island ⁠ #birdventurenz #subantarctic #expeditionguide #newzealand #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #penguin #penguinstagram #climatechange #endangeredspecies #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #ocean #nikonnz #nikond500 #seabirdscience #wilderness #adventure #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder https://www.instagram.com/p/B74UvbqJbcL/?igshid=k01ag5pkd5rv

Seeing these wonderful birds again was a highlight of the subantarctic voyage! ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ Light-mantled albatross, Carnley Harbour, Auckland Island⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ #birdventurenz #subantarctic #expeditionguide #newzealand #birdventure #aotearoa #newzealand #seabird #albatross #seabirdstory #seabirdbiologist #biologistlife #wildsouth #your_best_birds #nuts_about_birds #kings_birds #nzbirds #wildnz #subantarcticadventure #ocean #nikonnz #nikond500 #seabirdscience #wilderness #adventure #bird_lovers_daily #wanderwonder https://www.instagram.com/p/B7ogjvspvVe/?igshid=1bukgw1zl47hi