islandnaturespotter's Favourites
Photos / Sounds
What
New Zealand Falcon (Falco novaeseelandiae)Observer
samuelamarisDescription
With @benackerley. Pair living around the valley.
Photos / Sounds
What
Great Knot (Calidris tenuirostris)Observer
caiden_bDescription
Continuing bird. Great birding this morning with @islandnaturespotter
Photos / Sounds
What
New Zealand Brown Geckos (Genus Woodworthia)Observer
tonyjewellDescription
Not sure what to make of this one, found in a very isolated little area of creviced schist rock in the Waitaki Valley, between 20-30 km inland and only about 1 km south of the Waitaki River. Its size (SVL around 55-60 mm) would suggest an Alps (a number of adults including gravid females seen, confirming they are small), but its deep yellow eyes, toe shape and general colour pattern are quite unlike the Alps' among greywacke further west in the same valley, and I don't know of any alps anywhere having deep yellow eyes. Korero geckos are off to the south in the Kakanui Mts system, but although small for their species there they are still distinctly bigger then these ones and with rather different patterning. If I had to guess I'd probably go with aberrant Southern Alps gecko, maybe with some korero genetic influence? Superficially they're a little like the schist gecko, but surely much too isolated to be a population of them.
Photos / Sounds
What
Auckland Rail (Lewinia muelleri)Observer
theylooklikeusDescription
Chick, taken with trail camera.
Photos / Sounds
What
South Island Rifleman (Acanthisitta chloris ssp. chloris)Observer
william-harlandDescription
Even Riflemen sometimes need a contemplative gaze into the mirror!
Photos / Sounds
What
Ross Lily (Bulbinella rossii)Observer
christopherstephensDescription
spectacular duoculture of Anisotome latifolia and Bulbinella rossii. Such a sunny day that the heat shimmer was thwarting my attempts to do a telephoto foreshortening thingie
Photos / Sounds
What
Fiordland Penguin (Eudyptes pachyrhynchus)Observer
amedunaDescription
Discovered after New Year, with lots of feathers and foot prints around sitting in same place for a while. Moulting penguin. Checked on 12 Jan and penguin had gone back to sea.
Photos / Sounds
What
Australasian Crested Grebe (Podiceps cristatus ssp. australis)Observer
benackerley
Photos / Sounds
What
Auckland Snipe (Coenocorypha aucklandica ssp. aucklandica)Observer
christopherstephensDescription
Managed to see 2/3 snipe so pretty pleased (and Snares Snipe would be a bit of an unreasonable hope).
As you might expect I have an absurd number of photos from this trip. Complicated by taking all the photos in lossless NEF but Nikon's own software crashes when batch editing or exporting, lol
Photos / Sounds
What
Pimelea eremiticaObserver
marleyiDescription
A few plants seen on coastal headlands, a very rare plant!
Photos / Sounds
What
Short-finned Pilot Whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus)Observer
virginiacspencer
Photos / Sounds
What
South Island Lichen Moth (Ipana egregia)Observer
carey-knox-southern-scalesDescription
Quite a few of these around! Small group from a light I left at the Divide.
Photos / Sounds
What
New Zealand Skinks (Genus Oligosoma)Observer
carey-knox-southern-scalesDescription
Pallid skink - an undescribed species. Cryptic skink are found in the same area but at lower elevation. This species has the altitude record for skinks in Otago at 1,900 metres a.s.l.
Photos / Sounds
What
Mataura Skink (Oligosoma aureocola)Observer
carey-knox-southern-scalesDescription
Aotearoa's most recently described skink. Mataura skink (Oligosoma aureocola). Species name means 'dweller in gold' refering to the species strong use of Golden Spaniard or spear grass (Aciphylla aurea). Can someone chonk out the Wikipedia /iNat page? Knox, C.D., Patterson, G.B., Chapple, D.G. (2023): Oligosoma aureocola sp. nov. (Reptilia: Scincidae) from the northern Southland high country of Aotearoa/New Zealand. Zootaxa. 22 pp.
Photos / Sounds
What
Gobies and Allies (Order Gobiiformes)Observer
jeanthomasbujardDescription
(old, 1-2 years)
E. fusca ?
Freshwater.
Pictures showing fw biotope June 22, 2022.
System keeps me from changing Gobiiformes to Eleotris.
Photos / Sounds
What
Polynesian Rat (Rattus exulans)Observer
raphetnatureDescription
Or Rattus rattus?
Photos / Sounds
What
Pectoral Sandpiper (Calidris melanotos)Observer
jtweedDescription
A pair of pectoral sandpipers that have been hanging out at Mission Pool for the past week. Not the greatest photos unfortunately. Heavily streaked breast stopping abruptly at white belly; yellowish colour at base of bill.
Photos / Sounds
What
Veronica rapensisObserver
kenneth_r_woodDescription
PTBG herbarium (Wood 9345)
We called this Hebe rapensis (F.Br.) Garn.-Jones
Photos / Sounds
What
Casearia buelowiiObserver
vepaDescription
Identified by Dr Art Whistler during the BioRAP in 2014
Photos / Sounds
What
Thelymitra sansciliaObserver
marleyiDescription
Slightly pink form. Sparse cilia.
Photos / Sounds
What
Cicadas (Superfamily Cicadoidea)Observer
argonautaDescription
Just the exoskeleton of a cicada. Left behind once the insect emerged and moved on to the next stage.
Photos / Sounds
What
Black Emo Skink (Emoia nigra)Observer
theylooklikeusDescription
Saw a few of these darker skinks, only in the South East of Niue though probably exist everywhere. Seemed on average larger and more skittish than the much more common copper tail and azure skinks.
Photos / Sounds
What
Australasian Nankeen Night Heron (Nycticorax caledonicus ssp. australasiae)Observer
mgnzDescription
Waitati stream. Have never seen one here before.
