Thalassarche bulleri

What is this following the Stewart Island ferry as we pull into the harbor?! The endemic Buller's Mollymawk?!

I like this place already.

It was a spectacularly calm passage across the Foveaux Strait this morning. The water was so flat there were seabirds--shearwaters, diving petrels, shags, penguins, albatrosses--swimming and skimming the waves as far as the eye could see. So many birds out there. And no vomiting on this voyage!

This small albatross came swooping in just as we were crawling into port. It made two circles around the boat and then plopped down in the water, as if waiting to see if anything tasty would be chucked off the side. I couldn't have had a more perfect welcome to the island.

Buller's Mollymawk breeds on the Snares, the Chatham Islands, and several other New Zealand island groups. It ventures out as far as Australia, and some are found off the coast of South America each year. That radioactive yellow on the bill really glows when you see it in person, especially in contrast with the smoky quality of its brow. What a stunner!

This place is packed with opportunities for forest and seabird watching, and Brown Kiwis abound on the far side of the island. So you know where I'll be....