Tourism and Events Queensland. Photo: Biopixel
Pack the swimmers and plan a trip up north to Cairns and beyond, where winter temperatures hover around the mid-20s. Cairns, with its family-friendly properties (try Crystalbrook Collection s Bailey residences for extra space in a central location) and popular day trips out to the nearby Great Barrier Reef islands, is a great base for little ones, but consider driving north after a few days to road test the region s best of . At Port Douglas, Back Country Bliss Adventures offers River Drift Snorkelling in the Mossman River (check out the Sheraton Mirage as a place to hang your hat), while Ocean Safari, just off the Daintree Coast at Cape Tribulation, undertakes half-day snorkelling adventures at the spectacular Mackay and Undine reefs. Lock in a stay at Ferntree Rainforest Lodge (as well as a few lush rainforest walks). tropicalnorthqueensland.org.au
Plastic toy eaten by Royal Albatross for chick
3 May, 2021 07:24 PM
2 minutes to read
Albatrosses on Otago Peninsula are seriously threatened by plastic. Photo / Supplied
Otago Daily Times
A Royal albatross could be feeling a little hoarse after regurgitating an unusual meal for its chick.
The meal in question?
A 9cm plastic toy horse was discovered in a chick s nest early last week.
A northern royal albatross chick near the regurgitated plastic horse discovered in its nest. Photo / Supplied
Royal Albatross Centre operations manager Chris McCormack said the horse was the latest in a string of foreign objects found in nests over the past few years.
GO NZ: How and where to see wildlife in Dunedin and the Otago Peninsula
29 Apr, 2021 03:00 AM
6 minutes to read
Still sporting some baby down, this 7 month old juvenile royal albatross on Taiaora Head has reached its adult size by August and is only a month away from fledgling. Photo / Dunedin NZ
Still sporting some baby down, this 7 month old juvenile royal albatross on Taiaora Head has reached its adult size by August and is only a month away from fledgling. Photo / Dunedin NZ
NZ Herald
By: Jacqui Gibson
Dunedin is home to a curious range of wildlife all within easy reach from the city centre.
Photograph by Getty Images
The splendid grandeur of Larnach Castle, alongside the Victorian and Edwardian architecture in the city centre, means Dunedin is often dubbed the ‘Edinburgh of the south’. But escape the city to the peninsula, and Dunedin suddenly feels more like the Galápagos.
The 12-mile-long Otago Peninsula is home to an incredible array of marine life, including both the world’s smallest and rarest penguins: the little blue and yellow-eyed penguin, respectively. It’s also where you’ll find the only mainland breeding colony of the northern royal albatross in the world, which can be viewed from the observatory at the Royal Albatross Centre. Unbeknownst to most visitors, however, is that beneath the colony is the underground Historic Fort Taiaroa