Please enjoy this 24-hour live stream of a Northern Royal Albatross nest during the breeding season at Pukekura/Taiaroa Head on the southeast tip of New Zealand’s scenic South Island.
The Royal Albatross Cam, known since 2016 as the RoyalCam, is located on the windswept end of the Otago Peninsula, in the Taiaroa Head Nature Reserve. Taiaroa Head (or Pukekura) is world renowned as the only mainland colony of albatross in the Southern Hemisphere, and was an important site for Māori and (later) European settlers.
With nearly 10,000 seabirds residing on Taiaroa Head, the wildlife viewing opportunities at this site are immense, but timing is everything. Some species are only present for part of the year, others are nocturnal with their land based activities; others, like the giant albatross, prefer certain weather where there is wind to soar.
The season of 2019/2020 has seen the Royal Cam once again move up the hill. Now at Top Flat Track our new pair is OGK (which means banded Orange, Green, Black). Specifically, they are a 21 year old male and YRK (banded Yellow, Red, Black) and 25 year old female. They last laid an egg on 14 November 2019.
About the Albatross
Thanks to the efforts of the New Zealand Department of Conservation, the Northern Royal Albatross nesting at Taiaroa Head have been banded, and their individual histories have been recorded through prior nesting seasons. The Royal Albatross cam has featured a different nesting pair each year since starting in the 2015/2016 season.
You can learn more about the albatross here
Video stream compliments of Department of Conservation
