Description
“This completely new and fully updated edition of the hugely popular classic covers the 112 seabird species that are most likely to be encountered in New Zealand waters. Each species is illustrated with photos and a distribution map, while text accounts outline key ID and behavioural features, similar species, distribution and breeding areas, and population status. Advice on the best places to see each species is also given. Since the last edition nearly 150 new images have been added to the book, showing all the different key plumages of each species for example adult, immature and different morphs and illustrating the all-important wing-patterns of birds in flight to aid ID. For the first time it includes the likes of the newly described Whenua Hou Storm Petrel, the recently split Southern Rockhopper Penguin and vagrants like Red-footed Booby and Black-footed Albatross. Seabird groups covered are: albatrosses, mollymawks, shearwaters, petrels, storm petrels, diving petrels, giant petrels, prions, penguins, tropicbirds, gannets and boobies, shags, frigatebirds, skuas, gulls, terns and noddies. New Zealand is one of the major seabird centres of the world. Three-quarters of the worlds albatrosses, penguins and petrels and half the shearwaters and shags are to be found here, along with numerous representatives of a number of other groups. Moreover, a good proportion of these can be viewed without going far offshore and there are a growing number of ecotourism operators, including several that cater specifically for the seabird enthusiast, operating out of a wide variety of ports in North, South and Stewart Islands. “
