Chatham Island

Find the sketch biologist! Hiding in the jungle of the Tuku River Valley on Chatham Island, New Zealand. Photo by @ottowhitehead.

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Feb 4, 2018 at 11:50am PST

Sheep scrutiny

Over the past couple weeks I've repeatedly found myself under scrutiny by sheep on ridgelines above me. Every time, I hear this in my head.

Wild and woolly: a hint of sketches to come, from my latest trip to one of New Zealand’s offshore islands.

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Jan 26, 2018 at 3:45pm PST

Been off the grid for a few weeks. Time to catch up! Whee.

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Jan 26, 2018 at 1:00pm PST

Cliffhanger! Risking Life and Limb for Fluffy Seabirds

Another music video/science documentary mashup, this time involving falling off a cliff...

In which I plummet down a 70-meter seacliff to find nesting birds—fairy prions!—and their impossibly fluffy chicks. My latest Nat Geo story (link in bio) features a music video + science documentary with music from "Birds Say" by @darlingside.

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Jan 8, 2018 at 5:43pm PST

Return of the Penguins?

The fourth and final installment of Voyage of the Yellow-eyed Penguin.

Photo by John Ayers

Yellow-eyed penguins on a subantarctic island! One of the most endangered penguin species in the world.

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Dec 14, 2017 at 9:30pm PST

Kayaking 'round NZ

Merry Christmas from Moana Rua

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Dec 23, 2017 at 4:03pm PST

A pre-Christmas alpine kayak (above) and two kayaks around two Goat Islands, 1500km apart (below).

Knew I lugged this little yellow boat all the way from Maine for a reason... (photos: @edinzphoto)

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Oct 25, 2017 at 12:49pm PDT

It seems I can't go kayaking in New Zealand without kayaking around Goat Island. This particular Goat Island is in Port Chalmers, and like the last Goat Island I kayaked around, it has no goats. It does have black-backed gulls and white-fronted terns nesting on it.

A post shared by Abby McBride (@sketchbiologist) on Dec 13, 2017 at 12:44am PST