With its 1.8 m wing-span, the Australasian gannet is a conspicuous, predominantly white seabird that is common in New Zealand coastal waters. They can be observed feeding solitarily or in large congregations, especially near the larger colonies. Australasian gannets breed in dense colonies on coastal islands and on cliffs and beaches of some headlands of…

Identification Little black shags have sleek, all-black plumage with a dark green glossy sheen on the upper wings apparent in good light. They have dark facial skin, a thin black to dark grey bill and black legs and feet. The iris is bright green, and there are bluish-green tubercles around the eye. Small nuptial plumes…

Identification The little shag is a small shag that exhibits bewildering plumage variation. Most adults are black with white cheeks and throat, a colour morph sometimes referred to as a ‘white-throated shag’. At the other extreme, 8-60% of adults (depending on location) have completely white underparts, from face to undertail, indistinguishable from the little pied…

Identification The spotted shag is a slim, medium-sized, grey-blue marine shag with a long, slender bill and yellow-orange feet. Adult breeding birds have small black spots on the pale silver-grey and brown back and wings, pale grey-blue underparts, and black thighs, rump and tail. A distinctive curved broad white stripe runs from above the eye…

Identification Pied shags mainly inhabit coastal habitats about much of New Zealand. Adults have the crown, back of the neck, mantle, rump, wings, thighs and tail black, although on close inspection the upper wing coverts are grey-black with a thin black border. The face, throat, sides of neck and underparts are white. The long, hooked…

Identification Orange-fronted parakeets are small, green, long-tailed parakeets with a bluish tint to their plumage, and azure blue on their outer primaries and primary coverts. The crown is lemon yellow, and the frontal band above the eyes is orange, as are patches on either side of the rump. Colours tend to be brighter in males.…

Identification The king shag is a large black-and-white shag with big pink feet. The black feathers on forehead, crown and nape extend to just under the bill, making king shags appear ‘dark-headed’ compared to the similar-sized pied shag. The dorsal area of mantle, scapulars, back and tail are black apart from adults, which have a…