Nicholas
@petrel-nut.bsky.social
Seabird biologist with a passion for island restoration. Likes a bit of petrel-hunting. Ex-government Senior Research Scientist
After documenting an expanding Flesh-footed Shearwater population on Phillip off Norfolk last month, it was delightful to walk through the 10,000 burrow-strong Clear Place colony on Lord Howe last week. #SuperSeabirdSunday
November 22, 2025 at 9:37 PM
After documenting an expanding Flesh-footed Shearwater population on Phillip off Norfolk last month, it was delightful to walk through the 10,000 burrow-strong Clear Place colony on Lord Howe last week. #SuperSeabirdSunday
Surveying Lord Howe geckos between the two mountains here, showcased this year’s production of Providence Petrel fledglings- some still needing a good preen. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds
November 15, 2025 at 7:49 PM
Surveying Lord Howe geckos between the two mountains here, showcased this year’s production of Providence Petrel fledglings- some still needing a good preen. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds
A good news story after almost 10 years of working towards a local population recovery: www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...
#Seabirds
#Seabirds
November 5, 2025 at 1:08 AM
A good news story after almost 10 years of working towards a local population recovery: www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...
#Seabirds
#Seabirds
A late offering for #SuperSeabirdSunday a male Kermadec Petrel has his partner drop back into the nest site. First meet-up after 5 months apart at sea.
November 2, 2025 at 7:12 PM
A late offering for #SuperSeabirdSunday a male Kermadec Petrel has his partner drop back into the nest site. First meet-up after 5 months apart at sea.
Providence Petrel defending its burrow to all comers at the world’s 2nd only breeding island, Red Knoll, Phillip Island Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
July 5, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Providence Petrel defending its burrow to all comers at the world’s 2nd only breeding island, Red Knoll, Phillip Island Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
Placid Little Shearwater on the forest floor of Phillip Island, Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
June 22, 2025 at 7:56 PM
Placid Little Shearwater on the forest floor of Phillip Island, Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
May 20, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Yellow-legged gulls, looking statuesque (with other statues) on a Roman era bridge over the Tiber, Rome. #SuperSeabirdSunday will be whatever I come across in Europe for the next two months. Got to love #Seabirds🪶
April 27, 2025 at 4:26 AM
Yellow-legged gulls, looking statuesque (with other statues) on a Roman era bridge over the Tiber, Rome. #SuperSeabirdSunday will be whatever I come across in Europe for the next two months. Got to love #Seabirds🪶
No chocolate eggs but a pair of freshly hatched Little Penguin chicks from late last season. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
April 19, 2025 at 9:24 PM
No chocolate eggs but a pair of freshly hatched Little Penguin chicks from late last season. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
Australasian Seabird Groups Pacific Travel Grant enabled NGO presenters to share stories of seabird conservation successes and challenges at the 1st ever gathering in Auckland New Zealand as part of 2025 Oceania Seabirds. Inspiring & sobering so much yet to be started. #Pacificseabirds#Seabirds🪶
Alanna Smith & Kas Silk present on #OceaniaSeabird #conservation efforts from the Cook Islands, where rat eradication has been a major focus. Seabirds of the Cook Islands has just started a 2 yr petrel & shearwater monitoring project.
April 14, 2025 at 7:02 PM
Australasian Seabird Groups Pacific Travel Grant enabled NGO presenters to share stories of seabird conservation successes and challenges at the 1st ever gathering in Auckland New Zealand as part of 2025 Oceania Seabirds. Inspiring & sobering so much yet to be started. #Pacificseabirds#Seabirds🪶
A conference in Auckland New Zealand this week brings together Pacific seabird people from research, management and government to speak, listen and have hands-on experiences with regional experts to inspire and encourage connections and commitment for their conservation. #Pacificseabirds #Seabirds🪶
April 14, 2025 at 8:55 AM
A conference in Auckland New Zealand this week brings together Pacific seabird people from research, management and government to speak, listen and have hands-on experiences with regional experts to inspire and encourage connections and commitment for their conservation. #Pacificseabirds #Seabirds🪶
A peculiar male petrel (and Storm-petrel) habit is the courtship growl- I’ve often heard it from burrows but didn’t realise it involved inflation of the throat. Some species can have a very low register for their body size. Here a White-necked Petrel gives it his all. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
April 12, 2025 at 8:12 PM
A peculiar male petrel (and Storm-petrel) habit is the courtship growl- I’ve often heard it from burrows but didn’t realise it involved inflation of the throat. Some species can have a very low register for their body size. Here a White-necked Petrel gives it his all. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
A sleepy view of a pair of Black-winged petrels on a lazy afternoon, Phillip Island Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
April 5, 2025 at 8:23 PM
A sleepy view of a pair of Black-winged petrels on a lazy afternoon, Phillip Island Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
The Brown (previously Common) Noddy protecting its egg and keeping an eye on us as we step over its nest- built on the steep track, traversed between the landing site to the research hut on Phillip Island, Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
March 29, 2025 at 9:20 PM
The Brown (previously Common) Noddy protecting its egg and keeping an eye on us as we step over its nest- built on the steep track, traversed between the landing site to the research hut on Phillip Island, Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
Assisting in the 66th productivity survey of shearwaters on Montague Island, coastal NSW. Using hose pipes for detection, downy young are extracted for banding and species ID. For 25 yrs Wedge-tails have been in the ascendency as tropical conditions strengthen southwards. Climate changing.#Seabirds🪶
March 27, 2025 at 3:39 AM
Assisting in the 66th productivity survey of shearwaters on Montague Island, coastal NSW. Using hose pipes for detection, downy young are extracted for banding and species ID. For 25 yrs Wedge-tails have been in the ascendency as tropical conditions strengthen southwards. Climate changing.#Seabirds🪶
A Masked Booby indicates that my presence on the nearby track is as close as he’s happy with. His chick is in agreement. Phillip Island, Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
March 22, 2025 at 8:16 PM
A Masked Booby indicates that my presence on the nearby track is as close as he’s happy with. His chick is in agreement. Phillip Island, Norfolk. #SuperSeabirdSunday🪶
White-necked (naped) petrel pair in courtship The males growl in contrast to the females more common strident cry. Phillip Island, Norfolk (50 pairs). #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
March 15, 2025 at 9:36 PM
White-necked (naped) petrel pair in courtship The males growl in contrast to the females more common strident cry. Phillip Island, Norfolk (50 pairs). #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
The White-bellied Storm-petrel trip also gave up one of two deployed GLS loggers. 1st ever track. Aust. to Chile (10K km) and down towards the Antarctica coast. Unprecedented?! So hard to access remote colonies with over 80 island-days available (2009-2025) but only 8 landings possible.#Seabirds 🪶
March 15, 2025 at 2:01 AM
The White-bellied Storm-petrel trip also gave up one of two deployed GLS loggers. 1st ever track. Aust. to Chile (10K km) and down towards the Antarctica coast. Unprecedented?! So hard to access remote colonies with over 80 island-days available (2009-2025) but only 8 landings possible.#Seabirds 🪶
It’s taken 2 years but our hard work on Roach Is. off Lord Howe has been successful. Providing habitat for White-bellied Storm-petrels- safe from larger Little Shearwaters that take over natural burrows during chick provisioning. A slow burn project with many collaborators invested in success.
March 13, 2025 at 7:22 AM
It’s taken 2 years but our hard work on Roach Is. off Lord Howe has been successful. Providing habitat for White-bellied Storm-petrels- safe from larger Little Shearwaters that take over natural burrows during chick provisioning. A slow burn project with many collaborators invested in success.
Ridiculously rare footage for #SuperSeabirdSunday from late Feb. trip to Phillip Is. off Norfolk. 2nd only pop. of White-necked Petrels with one in company of Juan Fernandez Petrel, 10,000km from home islands. #Seabirds Amazing🪶
March 8, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Ridiculously rare footage for #SuperSeabirdSunday from late Feb. trip to Phillip Is. off Norfolk. 2nd only pop. of White-necked Petrels with one in company of Juan Fernandez Petrel, 10,000km from home islands. #Seabirds Amazing🪶
The Southern Shark Ecology Group has been tracking Tigers in the waters around Norfolk Island, with arrival and departure the same as Wedge-tailed Shearwaters. A huge 75% of their diet is seabirds! We are in the 1st stage of a collab to see if shark and shearwater migration areas match.#Seabirds🪶
March 4, 2025 at 7:47 PM
The Southern Shark Ecology Group has been tracking Tigers in the waters around Norfolk Island, with arrival and departure the same as Wedge-tailed Shearwaters. A huge 75% of their diet is seabirds! We are in the 1st stage of a collab to see if shark and shearwater migration areas match.#Seabirds🪶
Kermadec Petrel ‘606’ has done a great job as a first-time parent on Phillip Island, Norfolk. However, nest placement means every blowy day is a bad-hair-day! #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
March 1, 2025 at 7:09 PM
Kermadec Petrel ‘606’ has done a great job as a first-time parent on Phillip Island, Norfolk. However, nest placement means every blowy day is a bad-hair-day! #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
Nice to get hands on a few of these Grey Noddies (Ternlets) on Phillip Island off Norfolk (under ethics permitting) for GLS recovery to help a student attempting to unravel some of the mystery of these little-studied birds.#Seabirds 🪶
February 25, 2025 at 10:40 PM
Nice to get hands on a few of these Grey Noddies (Ternlets) on Phillip Island off Norfolk (under ethics permitting) for GLS recovery to help a student attempting to unravel some of the mystery of these little-studied birds.#Seabirds 🪶
Red-tailed Tropicbirds struggle on land and, when it comes to incubation shift-changes, those stubby legs mean significant effort to get the egg settled in the brood-patch. 2 of 2. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶
February 23, 2025 at 2:40 AM
Red-tailed Tropicbirds struggle on land and, when it comes to incubation shift-changes, those stubby legs mean significant effort to get the egg settled in the brood-patch. 2 of 2. #SuperSeabirdSunday#Seabirds🪶