The Great egret (Ardea alba) is a large, widely distributed wading bird. Like all egrets, it is a member of the heron family, Ardeidae, and its close relatieves are pelicans. The Great egret is sometimes confused with the Great white heron of the...
The Cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis) is a cosmopolitan species of heron named for its association with cattle. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Bubulcus, although some authorities regard its two subspecies as full species, the Western cattle...
The Great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) is a widespread member of the cormorant family of seabirds. Many fishermen see in the Great cormorant a competitor for fish. Because of this, it was hunted nearly to extinction in the past but luckily due to...
The Little egret (Egretta garzetta) is small elegant heron in the family Ardeidae. As an aquatic bird, it feeds in shallow water and on land, consuming a variety of small creatures. At one time common in Western Europe, the Little heron was hunted...
The Great crested grebe (Podiceps cristatus) is an aquatic diving bird noted for its elaborate mating display. It is the largest member of the grebe family found in the Old World, with some larger species residing in the Americas. These birds are...
The glossy ibis (Plegadis falcinellus ) is a water bird in the order Pelecaniformes and the ibis and spoonbill family Threskiornithidae. The scientific name derives from Ancient Greek plegados and Latin, falcis, both meaning "sickle" and referring...
The morepork (Ninox novaeseelandiae) is a small forest-dwelling owl. Described by Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788, it was for many years considered to be the same species as the Australian boobook of mainland Australia until 1999. Its name is...
The Australasian swamphen (Porphyrio melanotus ) is a species of swamphen (Porphyrio ) occurring in eastern Indonesia (the Moluccas, Aru and Kai Islands), Papua New Guinea, Australia and New Zealand. In New Zealand, it is known as the pukeko (from...
The monarch butterfly or simply monarch (Danaus plexippus) is a milkweed butterfly (subfamily Danainae) in the family Nymphalidae. Other common names, depending on region, include milkweed, common tiger, wanderer, and black-veined brown. It is...
The swamp harrier (Circus approximans ), also known as the Australasian marsh harrier, Australasian harrier or swamp-hawk, is a large, slim bird of prey widely distributed across Australasia. In New Zealand it is also known as the harrier hawk,...
Scutigera coleoptrata, also known as the house centipede, is a species of centipede that is typically yellowish-grey and has up to 15 pairs of long legs. Originating in the Mediterranean region, it has spread to other parts of the world, where it...
The New Zealand falcon (Māori: kārearea or kāiaia ; Falco novaeseelandiae ) is New Zealand's only falcon. Other common names for the bird are bush hawk and sparrow hawk. It is frequently mistaken for the larger and more common swamp harrier. It is...
The sacred kingfisher (Todiramphus sanctus ) is a medium-sized woodland kingfisher that occurs in mangroves, woodlands, forests and river valleys in Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the western Pacific.
The great spotted kiwi, great grey kiwi or roroa (Apteryx haastii ) is a species of kiwi endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. The great spotted kiwi, as a member of the ratites, is flightless. It is the largest of the kiwi. The rugged...
The western swamphen (known as Purple Swamphen) (Porphyrio porphyrio ) is a swamphen in the rail family Rallidae, one of the six species of purple swamphen. From the French name talève sultane, it is also known as the sultana bird. This...
The little pied cormorant, little shag or kawaupaka (Microcarbo melanoleucos ) is a common Australasian waterbird, found around the coasts, islands, estuaries, and inland waters of Australia, New Guinea, New Zealand, Thailand, Myanmar, Singapore,...
The eastern cattle egret (Bubulcus coromandus ) is a species of heron (family Ardeidae) found in the tropics, subtropics and warm temperate zones. Most taxonomic authorities lump this species and the western cattle egret together as subspecies of...
The South Island robin (Petroica australis ), is a sparrow-sized bird found only in New Zealand, where it has the status of a protected endemic species. The birds are sparsely distributed through the South Island and Stewart Island/Rakiura, although...
The Australasian bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus ), also known as the brown bittern or matuku hūrepo, and also nicknamed the "bunyip bird", is a large bird in the heron family Ardeidae. A secretive bird with a distinctive booming call, it is more...
The grey teal (Anas gracilis ) is a dabbling duck found in open wetlands in Australia and New Zealand.
The variable oystercatcher (Haematopus unicolor ) is a species of wader in the family Haematopodidae. It is endemic to New Zealand. The Maori name is torea-pango. They are also known as 'red bills'.
The Tasmanian masked owl (Tyto novaehollandiae castanops ) is a bird in the barn owl family Tytonidae that is endemic to the island state of Tasmania, Australia. It is the largest subspecies of the Australian masked owl, the largest Tyto owl in the...
The Australasian shoveler (Spatula rhynchotis ) is a species of dabbling duck in the genus Spatula. It ranges from 46 to 53 cm. It lives in heavily vegetated swamps. In Australia it is protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act, 1974. They...
Velella is a monospecific genus of hydrozoa in the Porpitidae family. Its only known species is Velella velella, a cosmopolitan free-floating hydrozoan that lives on the surface of the open ocean. It is commonly known by the names sea raft,...
The spotless crake (Zapornia tabuensis ) is a species of bird in the rail family, Rallidae.
The New Zealand fernbird or simply fernbird (Poodytes punctatus ) is an insectivorous bird endemic to New Zealand. In the Māori language, it is named kōtātā or mātātā.
The black-fronted tern (Chlidonias albostriatus ), also known as sea martin, ploughboy, inland tern, riverbed tern or tarapiroe, is a small tern generally found in or near bodies of fresh water in New Zealand, where it forages for freshwater fish,...
The black-fronted dotterel (Elseyornis melanops ) is a small plover wader in the Charadriidae family.
Pantala flavescens, the globe skimmer, globe wanderer or wandering glider, is a wide-ranging dragonfly of the family Libellulidae. This species and Pantala hymenaea, the "spot-winged glider", are the only members of the genus Pantala. It was first...
The short-finned eel (Anguilla australis), also known as the shortfin eel, is one of the 15 species of eel in the family Anguillidae. It is native to the lakes, dams and coastal rivers of south-eastern Australia, New Zealand, and much of the South...
The Cape honey bee or Cape bee (Apis mellifera capensis) is a southern South African subspecies of the western honey bee. They play a major role in South African agriculture and the economy of the Western Cape by pollinating crops and producing...
Apis mellifera iberiensis, or the Spanish bee, is a western honey bee subspecies native to the Iberian Peninsula. It is also found on the Balearic Islands.
Deinacrida fallai or the Poor Knights giant wētā is a species of insect in the family Anostostomatidae. It is endemic to the Poor Knights Islands off northern New Zealand. D. fallai are commonly called giant wētā due to their large size. They are...
Lamarck's honey bee or the Egyptian honey bee, Apis mellifera lamarckii, is a subspecies of honey bee occurring in a narrow range along the Egyptian Nile Valley of Egypt and Sudan, named after Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and is considered the first honey...
Apis mellifera cecropia, the Greek bee, is the subspecies of honey bee that is native to southern Greece. It is found also in southern Albania, and it is very similar to Apis mellifera ligustica, the Italian bee. it is favored for its extreme...
