Sally Greaves
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cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Sally Greaves
@cardiokiwi.bsky.social
300 followers 200 following 2.4K posts
Migrated from the old twitter. Cardiologist living in Aotearoa New Zealand with lots of sheep & 238 kākāpō. Science/nature nerd. Bird politics good, human politics suck, but interested. Serious about medicine, other things not so much.
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cardiokiwi.bsky.social
I knew these two variable oystercatchers had a nest somewhere in the spinifex grass. I had just about given up, as I didn't want to stress the birds any more, when I suddenly spotted three lovely eggs. The nest has been fenced off now to stop anyone accidentally stumbling into it.
Two variable oystercatchers (both completely black) with their characteristic orange beaks. They are on a white sand beach, close to a patch of spinifex grass. The blue sea is in the backgrouns. Three oystercatcher eggs - they look similar to dotterel eggs but are larger. They are quite camouflaged - the colour of sand with coarse black speckles. There is some spinifex grass close tot he eggs and some beach "decorations" - small and large sticks.
November 28, 2025 at 6:19 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
I see the resemblance, especially with the beak. But those guys are going to have to tuck in to get big enough to match this very round birb! 🤣
📷Daniel Lawrence
The takahe - a very round and brightly coloured flightless bird with a strong, short red beak. The plumage is a mixture of bright blue and some greener coloured feathers on the back.
November 28, 2025 at 6:18 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Driving to Duvauchelle. I'm always struck by how photographs of the Banks Peninsula seem to come out looking like watercolour paintings, making the scenery instantly recognisable.
A landscape photo. Rolling green hills in the foreground and background. Two areas of the harbour are captured, one light blue in colour, the other a richer shade of blue. The colours are soft and the photograph looks a bit like a watercolour.
November 27, 2025 at 6:48 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
I saw this rather lovely post the other day mourning the death of Lisa kākāpō and celebrating her life. 🥹
www.facebook.com/100063523242...
Farewell to a Matriarch: Honouring Lisa, One of the Last Original Kākāpō Lisa the kākāpō has taken her final flight beyond our world, leaving behind a legacy that shaped the very survival of her species. As one of the original Rakiura kākāpō discovered in the early 1980s—when only 29 birds were known to exist—Lisa was more than an individual. She was a founding mother, a living link to a past nearly lost, and a symbol of hope in one of Aotearoa’s most remarkable conservation stories. Her exact age will never be known, but she was at least 50 years old, making her one of the oldest and longest-monitored kākāpō ever recorded. During her lifetime, she contributed immeasurably to the recovery of her species. Lisa laid 11 clutches, producing 28 eggs, 16 fertile and 10 that successfully hatched. Her chicks, and the descendants that followed, continue to strengthen the fragile genetic diversity of a species still fighting its way back from the edge of extinction. Lisa lived through every major chapter of kākāpō conservation: the early relocations, the establishment of predator-free sanctuaries, the pioneering of new breeding technologies, and the growth of the population to more than 240 birds today. She stood as a reminder of where the species came from—and what it took to keep them alive. Her passing is deeply significant. We have not only lost a beloved bird, but a matriarch whose existence helped shape an entire recovery programme. Yet her story also highlights the triumph of perseverance, science, and the tireless dedication of the Department of Conservation and iwi partners. Lisa’s life was long, meaningful, and profoundly impactful. Her legacy echoes through every booming male, every chick hatched, and every future generation that survives because she once lived.
November 26, 2025 at 8:16 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
From the shore cam. The camera is positioned to observe a dotterel nest. JAB was banded at 'my' bay and has moved just a short distance around the coast to become a parent.
A New Zealand dotterel - a medium sized shore bird. The top of the head and wings are grey, the underparts are white. The beak is medium length and dark. The bird has been banded and the tag reads JAB.
November 25, 2025 at 6:16 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Where does that path go?
A boardwalk wanders through an area of bush - it seems to be heading towards a mountain - the mountain peak reaches towards a sky with blue and some white cloud. There is a modest layer of snow on the ground.
November 24, 2025 at 8:14 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Early morning on Birdling's Beach.
It's early morning. The approach to the beach is stony (the sea is not visible) but there are big patches of tough vegetation that manages to survive. The beach and clouds are suffused with a soft mauve colour. There is a little bit of brighter light just starting on the horizon. A little bit later and there is more light. There are some unusually shaped clouds in the sky. The beach is stony, the sea is a lovely light blue colour.
November 24, 2025 at 6:53 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
The terns were keeping their distance from the seagull shenanigans. I believe these are white fronted terns - and their official conservation status is 'declining'. 😔
Three terns on a stony beach with the sea in the background. The birds have a black cap separated from the bill by a white band. The underparts are white, the wings grey. The tail is forked.
November 23, 2025 at 7:32 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
So cute. This one - chubby as they all are, on the ground, all four of those short legs in the air. 🥰
A dark brown Shetland pony on his back in a field - all 4 short legs in the air. The caption in the blog is 'Newt managed to have a nice little roll, probably in something unmentionable if he could.'
November 23, 2025 at 6:32 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Closely related....
A cartoon penguin on an almost plain green background, is holding a sign that says, simply SHIT.
November 23, 2025 at 12:13 AM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
A somewhat blurry photo of a young thrush fledgling, not yet able to fly and hiding out in the undergrowth. Be safe, little one!
November 22, 2025 at 10:48 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Yes - there was seagull sex happening. 🙈
November 22, 2025 at 7:06 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
best 'return to sender' ever.
A letter sent by an ACT party MP. The letter gives a return to sender address. it now also has a clearly written note in large letters 'Return to sender. Party is a pack of cockwombles.'
November 21, 2025 at 7:51 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Around the corner, there was a nest which was clearly going to be washed out by a higher than usual tide - no options for shifting so - a sandcastle (feedbags filled with sand). Mum dot is now sitting on top of her castle. It only needs to survive about another week. 🤞🤞
Mum dot in her fenced off nest - she is sitting on her eggs which are now on top of a "sandcastle" (the base is feed bags filled with sand), with everything covered by lots of sand. Hopefully the eggs will be safe from the tide for the next week - they should be hatched after that.
November 21, 2025 at 7:39 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
I'm in 'deploy a birb' mode and this is the bestest birb news!

Wisdom has returned to Midway Atoll for nesting season, slightly earlier than prior years. Her new mate from last year has not been seen yet. Let's hope he turns up!
📷Keegan Rankin USFWS www.instagram.com/p/DRQEDcNkl-...
Wisdom, the oldest banded bird in the world - a female Laysan albatross. She is a large seabird with a white head (her face has some darker shading and she has a dark patch around her eyes). She has white underparts. The visible parts of her wings are dark. She has a strong orange beak. Her leg bands, by which she can be identified, are clearly visible.
November 21, 2025 at 7:36 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Me, running away from my problems.
A very muddy retriever type dog running away from - yes mud.
November 20, 2025 at 8:46 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Being a shorebird can be tough. Some dotterel nests are washed out, sometimes even after a shift to try to get them away from the tide (this was shifted).
1 - water coming into the nest 😢
2 - mum dot looking for her eggs
3 - mum sitting on eggs again. Unusual - they are likely not viable but ??
Taken from a cam on the beach. A New Zealand dotterel is on her nest, but the fencing around the nest is now under water and the tide is starting to come into the nest area. The nest has been washed out by the tide. The water is starting to recede and m Mum dotterel is looking for her eggs. The fencing around the nest is still under water but the tide has receded enough to expose the eggs, still in the scrape. Mum dotterel is sitting on them again.
November 20, 2025 at 6:48 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
From the shore cam.
An inquisitive looking New Zealand dotterel in front of a camera trap set to follow progress at her nest (there is fencing around the nest in the background).
November 19, 2025 at 8:25 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
'Hey Mabel, I've found the camera the bird paparazzi use! Wanna give them a *real* show??' 🫣
Two variable (named as such because they may be all black or have some white) oystercatchers - large shore birds and these are all black, with pink legs and long bright orange beaks. They also have bright orange around the eyes. The image is taken from a camera placed in a protective cage. The friend who sent me this said "I swear these characters know the camera is there - they are always showing off in front of it. Looks like the start of mating, as one oystercatcher hops on the back of another....
November 14, 2025 at 6:48 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Perfect.
The harbour is in the background. There is a row of spinifex grass growing in the sand. In the foreground is a sign that says 'Nesting Time - No Dogs Please". Standing close to the sign is a New Zealand dotterel, one of the afore mentioned nesting birds. it is a medium sized shore bird. The underparts are cream but there is also prominent orange/brown plumage which appears during breeding season.
November 13, 2025 at 6:26 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Seeing a white tui would be a birding highlight! www.nzherald.co.nz/rotorua-dail...
📷Nathan Pye
A rare white Tui. A medium sized bush bird with a distinctive white throat tuft. Another photo of a fluffed up white Tui with a 'normal' friend - this one appears black from a distance but has a blue sheen up close, a thin white ruff around its throat and a white throat tuft.
November 12, 2025 at 6:26 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Drop something blue
The sky is a brilliant blue. A kingfisher is perched on a power line, looking very alert - a medium sized bird with a strong beak. It has mixed colour plumage with some prominent blue near the tail.
November 8, 2025 at 6:47 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Sometimes the shore cam picks up something special. A NZ Shore Plover (tūturuatu) - rare, supposedly not found on the mainland. The photo is not great but good enough for identification. One friend said "I never believe what they say", another said "he's probably just passing through". 🤔☺️
The shore plover - a small, stocky plover with a distinctive black (male) face mask that extends down to cover the neck and throat. A white strip circles the head above the eye. Below the face mask the throat is white. There is orange at the base of the bill.
November 7, 2025 at 6:48 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
Another great choice for Penguin of the year, pointed out to me by @jmk15.bsky.social , is Flip.

'Flip knows how to penguin well. She stands up for her boyfriend Captain when younger birds are picking on him. She is a successful mum. And she does it all with only one flipper!
A little blue penguin is seen looking out from her nesting box. Flip knows how to penguin well. She even stands up for her boyfriend Captain when younger birds are picking on him. And she does it all while missing one flipper!
November 6, 2025 at 6:47 PM
cardiokiwi.bsky.social
It's good enough for Monty Python. 😆
A tweet from the other place. "We're back to the sandwich video. The paper, the defence points out, is still on. 'You don't see there's mustard on it? You can't tell there's ketchup on it" Mayonnaise" Lettuce" Tomato" In fact, that sandwich hasn't exploded at all?" Witness says the sandwich "looks bent and out of shape."
November 5, 2025 at 8:12 PM