Very similar to the Campbell Island Shag, the Auckland Island Shag has a variable neck pattern with the black sometimes meeting across the foreneck, sometimes mottled and sometimes completely separated by white. These are the only shags on the Auckland Islands. They nest November to February on cliff ledges. Males have a variety of displays including "gaping" as seen here. This species is listed as "vulnerable" by IUCN because of its extremely limited breeding range confined to the Auckland Islands. The entire world population is estimated to be about 1000 pairs. This species is lumped with the Campbell and Bounty Islands Shags by H&M4 following a more traditional biological species approach.
