From Nine to Noon 22 December 2014
Kiwis pop up in the most unusual places. On a remote island called Assumption in the Seychelles – en route to an even more remote atoll, Aldabra – Kennedy Warne ran into Nick Page, a New Zealander with a mission to kill the last red-whiskered bulbul on Assumption. He’s also trying to mop up the last of the Madagascar fodies – another species of bird – on Assumption.
Departing for Aldabra from the island of Assumption
Shooter Nick Page with a picture of his quarry: the red-whiskered bulbul. There is just one left on Assumption Island
Only one island of the four that make up Aldabra atoll is inhabited. A small research station is maintained here
Aldabra became a World Heritage Site in 1982.
The view to sea, across the broad reef flat
As the tide ebbs across the reef flat in front of the research station, dozens of juvenile blacktip reef sharks mill about in the warm, shallow water
Blacktip reef sharks patrol the warm waters off the main island of Picard
Red-footed boobies nest and roost in mangroves on Aldabra
Superb aerialists, great frigate birds are a joy to watch
One of Aldabra's many endemic bird species: the Aldabra drongo
The only remaining species of flightless bird in the Indian Ocean is the Aldabra rail, which has a call that is remarkably similar to the New Zealand weka
Many muffin-top islets stud the vast Aldabra lagoon
Much of Aldabra's land consists of jagged limestone rock called “champignon”
A chapel remains from an earlier period in Aldabra's history, when a community of 200 people caught fish and captured nesting turtles for their meat
Mangrove crab foraging under casuarina trees
There are in excess of 100,000 giant tortoises on Aldabra
One of the research station’s resident giant tortoises investigates a newly arrived batch of supplies
Any standing water is eagerly sought by giant tortoises, for cooling off
Much of the vegetation is trimmed to tortoise height
Tortoises hoist themselves on their hind legs to reach green leaves
For most of the day, giant tortoises seek shade: under trees, in caves or beneath the floor joists of houses
Inland tidal pool has a population of upside-down jellyfish - jellyfish which lie on the substrate, bell side down, and use their tentacles to trap food particles
The images in this gallery are used with permission and are subject to copyright conditions.
