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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 17h

The Day 5 Ink-Birdtober challenge was a tricky mashup: the Atlantic Canary and "Smack". That is, until I read that a collective noun for jellyfish is a smack. So, with admittedly some hesitation, I bring you The GREAT ATLANTIC SMACK CANARIUM! Part aviary, part […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

My ink drawing of a poster advertising an attraction on the Canary Islands called the GREAT ATLANTIC SMACK CANARIUM. There's a picture of a canary singing next to a mauve stinger jellyfish, which has a big cap and four long tentacles.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 04/10/2026

Here's my Day 4 of the Ink-Birdtober challenge. The 4 October Birdtober prompt is the Gouldian Finch, from Northern Australia, and the Inktober prompt is Cacti. There are no cacti native to Australia, so I've substituted the mungily, *Tecticornia verrucosa*, a […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

My ink drawing for Birdtober-Inktober of a Gouldian Finch, perched on the top of a succulent plant.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Here's something my 18-year old daughter has been making with some of her writer friends. It's "Young Writers Yap", a radio show and Podcast on Plains Media–Te Reo Irirangi O Te Maania. They've published 11 episodes so far, interviewing different talented local writers. It's lots of fun, with […]

mastodon.nz

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Robyn Nuthall @robynnuthall.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Ka kanikani te kanakana, ae! A lamprey! An ancient native fish under threat spotted in the Waimakariri River An ancient native fish under threat spotted in the Waimakariri River share.google/mxZg8tQ8fB9oRtZjB

odt.co.nz

An ancient native fish under threat spotted in the Waimakariri River

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Which Quetzal is right for you? Here's my Day 3 of the Ink-Birdtober challenge. The 3 October Birdtober prompt is the Resplendent Quetzal and the Inktober prompt is Miniature. I figure the Quetzal Mini must be an egg and the Quetzal Ultra is the ridiculously […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

My ink drawing for Birdtober of the Resplendent Quetzal. On the left is the adult male, labelled as Quetzal Ultra, "Innovative design for ultimate resplendence". Next is the female, less colourful and without the silly, long tail feathers. She's the Quetzal Pro, "Strength. Beauty. Replendent.". Third is a fluffy little brown juvenile, recently fledged. They're Quetzal Air, "Say hello to Quetzal". Last is the small Quetzal egg. This is Quetzal Mini, "The smallest Quetzal ever with Pro resplendence inside".

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Obsidian Urbex Photography @obsidianurbex.mstdn.social.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

🖊️🚫 Wrong answers only! What is this huge mysterious machine? A large ring surrounds it, connected to a maze of pipes. Share your creative story! PSA - I know what it is, but I am bored and feeling silly. Have some fun, go wild 😉 #StoryTelling #Photography #Creativity

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Ika Makimaki @pezmico.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

Hell yeah! Choo choo mfers! 🚉 If I wasn't already locked in for a green vote, these would certainly do it. ✅✅💚 Green Party announces plan for passenger rail between major NZ cities […]

mastodon.nz

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 03/10/2026

I'm just heading out for my weekly run about the city, to count and map wild species (this is a route I've been doing fortnightly since 2008). I always count wild birds, mammals and herps, and my core set of insects, like butterflies. Plants, on the other hand […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A piece of paper with hand-written plant names in pencil. It says Chilean mayten, Laburnum, big Euphobia, bluebells, Syzgiuym, evergreen buckthorn, Lophomyrtus + myrtle rust.

A photo of all the kit I'm about to take on my run. There's my monocular, my iPhone (13 mini) plugged into an external RODE videomicro microphone with a wind shield (they city's a windy place so this set-up makes much better recordings), a Garmin GPS unity, a Sony RX0ii mini-camera (used mainly for photopoints), and a Nikon Z30 camera with its DX 50–250 mm telephoto lens plus a Raynox DCR-250 macro attachment. Plus, there's my backpack (which also contains some snacks).

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Chuck Darwin @cdarwin.c.im.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

A newly-discovered amoeba has set the record for the hottest temperature at which complex life can thrive. The amoeba, found in Lassen Volcanic National Park in California, grows and divides at temperatures up to 145 degrees Fahrenheit (63 degrees Celsius) and can survive brief stints in up to […]

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Picturavis @picturavis.vernissage.photos.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

This parakeet is one of the endemic species of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta in Colombia. It lives in the mountain range between 2000 and 3500 m. We had to get up very early and drive up the mountain on a very bad road to see this beautiful parakeet. It […] [Original post on vernissage.photos]

A green parrot perching on a tree, eating its dark red berries. The parrot has a striking white ring around its eye and orange-to-yellow wing shoulders. An orange line can also be seen across its chest. The background is white.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

For the theme #AWiderWorld for #JukeboxFridayNight, here's Swara-Kakali from Menuhin Meets Shankar, featuring Indian sitar master Ravi Shankar with America classical violinist Yehudi Menuhin. My Dad used to play this when I was young (intermixed with Zeppelin and the Stones). It's still good […]

mastodon.nz

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

Here's my Day 2 of the Ink-Birdtober challenge. The 2October Birdtober prompt is the Hawaiian ʻIʻiwi, and the Inktober prompt is Relic. I've mixed them up with an ʻIʻiwi finding a lost old iPod (ʻIʻpod) on the mossy forest floor. #Birdtober #Inktober #birds […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

My drawing of an ʻIʻiwi (a long, curved beaked bright orange Hawaiian bird but this in in inked in black on white paper for Inktober) and it's lookig at a lost OG iPod on the mossy forest floor.

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Ika Makimaki @pezmico.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

🇯🇵 + 🇨🇴 = 🔥 Minyo Cumbiero - Cumbia del Monte Fuji www.youtube.com/watch?v=jy6No4Xuq_E #AWiderWorld #JukeboxFridayNight

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Bokbot @chicken.bots.robots.rodeo.ap.brid.gy · 02/10/2026

Bok Bok Bok bok, bok bok bok bok bok bok-bok bok, bok bok bok.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 01/10/2026

Look! I did a drawing! I haven't drawn in years. Let's see if I can keep this up for a month! This is Day 1 of Ink-Birdtober challenge. The 1 October Birdtober prompt is the African Lilac-breasted Roller, and the Inktober prompt is Apple, so I've mixed them up […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

My ink drawing of a bird eating a caterpillar from an apple.

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Dave Moskovitz (((❤️))) @davemosk.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

Formal complaint that NZ climate backsliding breaches Europe trade deal - Newsroom newsroom.co.nz/2026/09/30/formal-co… The Government's top law officer warned that if ministers blocked Mike Smith's Fonterra lawsuit, the next […]

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Adrianna Tan @skinnylatte.hachyderm.io.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

I really like baby wombats

A baby wombat being cradled by a caretaker

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 27/09/2026

There’s a fantastic article on the front page of the #RNZ website this morning about the rise of birding amongst young people in NZ. It’s been great to see them become big parts of eBird and iNaturalist. “I don't really care about getting wet or rained on, or muddy,” Joseph says, adding he’s […]

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 27/09/2026

Over on his YouTube channel EntoExplorer has made a terrific video on four of Aotearoa-New Zealand's most unique and rare arthropods. There's a couple of weird beetles, some unusually alpine cicadas, and one of the most epically stylish green harvestmen, *Algidia viridata*. The video highlights […]

mastodon.nz

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Obsidian Urbex Photography @obsidianurbex.mstdn.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/09/2026

The ruins of Falcon Works, located in Hanley (Stoke-on-Trent, England). Demolition work started on this Grade II Listed building last year. Soon after, work was halted while investigations were done due to concerns the historic kiln had been damaged. #Hanley #StokeOnTrent #History #Pottery

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 26/09/2026

We just watched this terrific short doco on Wellington’s tree man, a busker who dresses up as a tree and stands in the bushes of traffic islands playing the saxophone, all to brighten people’s days. Worth a watch. Very Kiwi. www.youtube.com/watch?v=4U6RD2OjmPA #buskers #nz #Wellington […]

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 26/09/2026

Here's last night's sunset from Ōtautahi-Christchurch, NZ. The day ended with a thick easterly cloud bank across the city and Canterbury Plains but at the end of the day the sun did its best to peak through. I just uploaded my favourite two photos to Flickr. Pop […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

My panorama photo of the sun setting under a thick low cloud bank over the Canterbury Plains. The sun is shining out from behind the cloud to light up the trees and farmland in the centre of the photo.

My photo of the sunset, tilted on its side a little showing an aeroplane in the sky in the top right and an electricity pylon lit up by the sunset in the lower right.

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Patioboater @patioboater.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 26/09/2026

Reflected sunset. September 25, 2026. Wolverine Lake, Michigan. #photography #sunset #reflection #michigan #fall #art #MastoArt

Photograph of sunset light reflected off a lake surface forming two bright orange, horizontal bars against a dark blue background.

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Ika Makimaki @pezmico.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 25/09/2026

Breaking! 🚨 Greenpeace boards Government-owned vessel in deep sea mining protest - Greenpeace Aotearoa www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/press-r… #stopSeabedMining #ProtectTheOceans #Ocean

greenpeace.org

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Pottery by Osa @potterybyosa.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 25/09/2026

I was given the recipe for the off-white glaze I use by another potter and it was a game changer for me. Before that, I was using glossy opaque glazes that completely covered my red stoneware clay whose color I loved so much. For years, I would compensate by […] [Original post on mastodon.social]

A decorative ceramic ewer with a rounded body, a slender neck, and a spout. It features intricate carvings and a mix of off-white and light blue semi-matte glaze, complemented by a round matching plate beneath it.

A decorative ceramic mug with a textured surface featuring green leaf patterns and a base with carved line patterns. The background is a neutral brown.

A decorative ceramic shallow, wide-rimmed bowl featuring a textured rim and a central pattern of triangular shapes in earthy tones with turquoise accents.

A decorative ceramic mug featuring geometric patterns in earthy tones of brown, beige, and turquoise. The mug has a textured surface and a curved handle.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 26/09/2026

Note to self: don’t drop micro SD cards in the forest. Last weekend I didn’t realise until after I got home that I’d accidentally dropped a memory card at one of my bird monitoring stations. I went back today to look for it, and it took me a while, but *I found it*! Lesson learned (I hope).

A screenshot from Messages on my phone with two photos, one of the forest where I lost the SD card, and my hand holding the found SD card, followed by the words “I found it!!!” and my wife’s reaction of a gif of Joey from Friends with his mouth wide open in surprise.

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David B. :SetouchiExplorer: @david.fediverse.setouchi.social · 25/09/2026

#CrowUpdate I got home shortly before dusk and crows all over the city have clearly started roosting. When I got home, Mr Crow was alone on a pole on the other side of the park. While he can fly, he definitely can't fly long distances (he's still missing some […] [Original post on setouchi.social]

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Ika Makimaki @pezmico.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 25/09/2026

In case you missed it, this speech by Chlöe Swarbrick is 🔥 youtu.be/2IklfJS25rI #NZPol #voteGreen #ditchThePricksIn26

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 25/09/2026

Here’s Dick Gaughan performing Pete Seeger’s “Waist Deep in the Big Muddy” live in 2001 for the #dirty theme for #JukeboxFridayNight. www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZYCQVdtLYU #DickGaughan #PeteSeeger #livemusic

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 24/09/2026

My evening has been spent programming AudioMoths for passive monitoring of birds in the Port Hills of Ōtautahi-Christchurch, NZ. When I swap over the units tomorrow it will mark 12 months of recording across 14 sites, from Ahuriri Bush in the west to Jollies Bush […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A photo of some tech gadgets (AudioMoth audio recorders) in plastic water-proof containers on the floor.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23/09/2026

Here's a wee post in memory of Gimli Pig, our guinea pig, who passed away yesterday. My daughter and I caught Gimli and his brother Scruffles back in 2019 in the reserve by our house, where someone had abandoned them and the rest of the family. It took us a […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A photo from July 2019 of one of the makeshift traps we used to catch the abandoned guinea pigs in this public reserve. Dogs regularly are walked off lead here so it was a race against time. The photo shows a plastic basket up-side-down propped up with a stick attached to a string.

A photo of young Gimli Pig the day after we'd caught him. He's a blotchy tan brown and white guinea pig.

A photo of the morning ritual of our rabbit Firecracker and Gimli Pig the guinea pig eating carrot peelings in our lounge.

A photo of young Gimli Pig relaxing on our couch with the family.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23/09/2026

One of the postdocs here at #LincolnUniversityNZ, Jan Dudenhöffer, just showed me this fun paper he published last year on trends in bird names used by New Zealand businesses. Jan and colleagues found that there's been a small but significant upward trend in NZ businesses naming themselves with […]

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Medieval Illumination @medieval-illuminations.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy · 23/09/2026

Squirrel on gold. Brunetto Latini, Li Livres dou Trésor, Rouen ca. 1450-1480. Bibliothèque de Genève, Ms. fr. 160, fol. 82r. #medieval #MedievalArt

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 22/09/2026

We had an article published today in the open science journal #PeerJ about my method for recording roadkill. I've been mapping and counting roadkill along my bike commute to work since 2003. Our paper describes how I now do it using a smart phone (I started with pen and paper). It includes some […]

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 22/09/2026

If you're in Ōtautahi Christchurch, NZ, and interested in nature, here's something for your calendar next week. Scorpio Books is hosting the book launch of the amazing "The World Beneath Our Feet" by @frankashwood. Thu 1st October | 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm Note that there's an RSVP link on Scorpio's […]

mastodon.nz

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/09/2026

I wrote a photos post for August and posted it a few days ago, but haven't had time to post a thread yet. Here it is. Once again, I'm travelling, so the thread may be somewhat delayed... patricklam.ca/post/20260907-august-… Featuring pictures from […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

Multi-tiered waterfalls with a slow shutter speed and hence creamy-looking water. The falls are running in front of slabby rocks, with more rock (overhanging) to the left. There is various lush Aotearoa greenery on the fringes of the picture.

A horse in a pasture near the Maison Vielle refuge above Courmayeur. The white and brown horse looks like it's prancing. There's also a cow in the picture doing cow things.

A view of the Fleuve St. Laurent from atop a ski hill (Le Massif). It's like you're skiing right down into the river. This was in winter just before the staff went on strike.

Me with a mountain bike, looking muddy and somewhat the worse for wear. Note the new tears in my jacket.

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 21/09/2026

I spent Friday on Ōtamahua/Quail Island in Lyttelton Harbour with the first year ecology course of #LincolnUniversityNZ. Ōtamahua is a public reserve that has for several decades been the focus of tree planting and mammalian predator control. Each time we visit […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A photo of the students of our first year ecology course being told about the history of the ecological restoration on the island by James Ross, Lincoln University's wildlife biologist and an ex-trustee of the Quail Island restoration trust.

A photo of one of the waitaha geckos that are now thriving on the island. This one is being gently held by the university herpetologist Jennifer Gillette, who has a permit to handle lizards. Don't pick up geckos unless you have the training and permit, as you can hurt them if you do it wrong.

A photo of some of the ecology students in forest. Each year our students survey the growth of the forest on the island. All of the canopy trees here were planted about three decades ago (by volunteers) and there are now wild seedlings regenerating underneath.

A photo of Tim Curran, left, with students, exploring the sea life along the rock shore. When we're lucky to time our visit with low tide, we can see what marine creatures we can find.

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Woke Clueless Globalist @salty.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 20/09/2026

Did booth duty for the Greens at the Kumeu Makets today. There was Green, Labour and National all right next to one another. The Nats brought about half a dozen Young Nats. They wanted to talk to us and ask why we were in the Green Party. So I told them - brought up in Aus in a Liberal Party […]

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Terrible Maps :bot: @terriblemaps.zpravobot.news.ap.brid.gy · 18/09/2026

Which Australian capital city is closest to you

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 18/09/2026

The music I find most powerful is the music that I don’t understand and briefly transports me to some bigger, different place. For the #PersonalPlaylist theme for #JukeboxFridayNight here’s an old example of a song I keep coming back to when I need to shove my brain away from normal: “Maze” by […]

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kim_harding ✅ @kim-harding.mastodon.scot.ap.brid.gy · 16/09/2026

Fungi neutralize spruce defense mechanisms with sugar nachrichten.idw-online.de/2026/09/1… Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology have discovered a detoxification strategy employed by fungi that involves binding […]

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Jon Sullivan @joncounts.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 16/09/2026

Legendary NZ entomologist and biogeographer George Gibbs sadly passed away last week, after a long life. George wrote such classics as Ghosts of Gondwana, New Zealand Butterflies, and An Exquisite Legacy (about his grandfather George V. Hudson, also a famous NZ naturalist). His career was as an […]

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Simon Brooke @simon-brooke.mastodon.scot.ap.brid.gy · 13/09/2026

Danny Macaskill demonstrating what bike skills are, once again. #BikeTooter #WeAreNotWorthy www.youtube.com/watch?v=YdlxXM_AEGQ

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