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New Zealand

Bruce is missing the top half of his beak. 

A Disabled Parrot in New Zealand Became Alpha Male Thanks to His Innovative Fighting Style

A kea parrot’s half-beak became an advantage instead of a disadvantage, researchers suggest in a new study

As of April 10, 105 kakapo eggs had hatched, and 95 chicks were still alive.

A Bountiful Berry Harvest Put These Chunky, Endangered Parrots in the Mood. Now, Scientists Are Celebrating a Breeding Bonanza

New Zealand’s kakapo have laid 256 eggs, and around 100 of them have hatched, providing a bright spot in a decades-long conservation effort. The official chick count won’t be confirmed until the youngest birds are about 5 months old

A written description (left) of New Zealand flax (illustrated on the right) references an Indigenous name for the plant: “haragag.”

Newly Digitized Records Reveal How Indigenous People Shared Their Knowledge of New Zealand’s Plants With Captain Cook’s Crew

Long-overlooked documents housed at London’s Natural History Museum testify to the exchange of information between 18th-century European botanists and their Indigenous counterparts

Veterinarian Ruben Aleman surgically removed the hooks and wire, setting the bird on the path to recovery.

Fishing Line and Hooks Were Tangled in This Albatross’s Stomach. After Surgery, the Bird Is Once Again Flying Free

The juvenile Salvin’s albatross was discovered by a fisherman in Anconcito, Ecuador

Ned (right) likely won't be able to reproduce unless another left-coiling snail is found.

A Rare, Left-Coiling Snail Needs Help Finding a Mate. New Zealanders Are Looking for Its 1-in-40,000 Match

Known as Ned, the creature needs a fellow left-coiling garden snail to reproduce—but the species almost always has shells that coil on their right side

An artist's interpretation of what early penguins in New Zealand might have looked like

Early Penguins Had Long, Dagger-Like Beaks for Skewering Fish, New Zealand Fossils Reveal

Paleontologists describe four new species of extinct ancestral penguins that help shed light on how the iconic birds evolved after dinosaurs went extinct

Due to conservation efforts, more than 240 kākāpō live on sanctuary islands, but the species remains critically endangered.

New Zealand’s Massive Green Parrots Have Narrowly Avoided Extinction. But Many of Their Parasites Did Not Survive

A study examining fossilized droppings reveals the kākāpō has faced a decline in the diversity of its parasites—and that might not be a good thing

Rangers witnessed a captive Powelliphanta augusta snail lay an egg from its neck, and they managed to catch it on video for the first time ever.

Watch a Giant Snail Lay an Egg From a Pore in Its Neck in First-Ever Footage Captured in New Zealand

Conservation rangers took a video of an endangered, captive snail laying a large egg, revealing insight into the creature’s reproductive process

The two eagle sculptures—including one with the wizard Gandalf riding on its back—have soared over visitors at Wellington International Airport in New Zealand for more than a decade.

Say Goodbye to This Massive ‘Hobbit’-Themed Sculpture of Gandalf Riding an Eagle

For more than a decade, the eye-catching artwork had hung from the ceiling of Wellington International Airport in New Zealand, where “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” were filmed

Dumbo octopuses, like the Opisthoteuthis agassizii seen here during a 2019 dive, are the deepest-living group of octopuses known.

Humans Have Seen Only 0.001 Percent of the World’s Deep Seas, Leaving Most of the Planet a Vast Mystery

Researchers argue that expanding deep-sea exploration is vital to understanding and managing these marine habitats

Researchers spotted an orange blob near a shark's head. It turned out to be an octopus along for a ride.

Watch an Octopus Hitch a Ride on a Shark—an Unusual Duo Dubbed the ‘Sharktopus’

Researchers in New Zealand captured the odd pairing on video, but they still don’t know how to explain the behavior

"Mr. Blobby" is a blobfish discovered in 2003 off the coast of New Zealand. The preserved specimen is now housed at the Australian Museum in Sydney.

Voters Crown the ‘World’s Ugliest Animal’ as New Zealand’s Fish of the Year

The blobfish is specially adapted to life in the deep ocean, but it looks like a shapeless blob when brought to the surface. It beat out the other candidates with its “unconventional beauty”

Nikau Dix holds a carved waka piece he found in the creek.

Cool Finds

A Fisherman and His Son Noticed Strange Pieces of Wood on a Beach. They Turned Out to Be Fragments of a Polynesian Canoe

The boat, known as a waka, was unearthed in the Chatham Islands. Researchers say it could be one of the most significant discoveries of its kind

Fossilized feces, also known as coprolites, are helping scientists in New Zealand peer back in time.

Fossilized Poop Reveals How Extinct, Flightless Birds Helped Spread New Zealand’s Colorful Fungi

The upland moa was likely drawn to the fungi because of their resemblance to berries, scientists say, allowing the creature to fill a role typically played by mammals

A Surinam golden-eyed tree frog calls for a mate, puffing out its cheeks.

See 25 Incredible Images From the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Contest

Cast your vote for your favorite of the photographs, which are all contenders for the People’s Choice award, through January 29

Last week, scientists conducted the first-ever dissection of a spade-toothed whale, the rarest whale species on Earth.

Scientists Just Dissected the World’s Rarest Whale in New Zealand. Here’s What They Found

Only seven spade-toothed whales have ever been identified, and the species has never been seen alive. After one washed ashore last summer, researchers have made new discoveries—including that the animal had nine stomach chambers and vestigial teeth

Researchers used a line array of hydrophones towed behind a ship for three weeks in the 1980s. They collected data nonstop, listening to all the sounds in the ocean. One such sound was the enigmatic "quacking" that one expert now says might represent a conversation.

Mysterious, Repetitive ‘Quacking’ Noise in the Southern Ocean May Have Been a Conversation Between Whales

During a 1982 experiment, researchers recorded the unusual sound, termed “bio-duck.” Now, a researcher suggests they may have been listening in on animals talking to each other

After female penguins lay eggs, parents take turns warming the nest during the roughly 43-day incubation period.

How Scientists’ Tender Loving Care Could Save This Endangered Penguin Species

From fish smoothies to oral antibiotics, researchers are taking matters into their own hands in a radical effort to save New Zealand’s yellow-eyed penguins

A participant dressed up as a demon brandishes a stick with fireworks during Correfoc in Catalonia.

Halloween Is Spooky. But So Are These Eight Other Celebrations Around the World

From Setsubun in Japan to Fèt Gede in Haiti, these festivals relish in the macabre

The Hinemoana Halo Waka Moana Initiative recruited 12 crew members from the Cook Islands, New Zealand, Samoa and Tonga.

An All-Female Crew Sailed 1,000 Miles in a Traditional Voyaging Canoe to Help Save Humpback Whales

The team traveled from New Zealand to Tonga along a humpback highway to collect environmental DNA and raise awareness of the plight of the marine mammals

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