A webcam at Otago's Royal Albatross Centre is proving to be a hit, with viewers tuning in from more than 100 countries around the world.
Since hatching in January at Otago's Taiaroa Head, royal albatross Moana has clocked up more than a million views online, via the webcam.
That's translated to more visitors at the sanctuary and also given the Department of Conservation (DoC) 600,000 new 'virtual' rangers, who let the conservation agency know if they spot a predator or catch a special photo of the birds.
Dunedin Hospital's neurosurgery department has been using the webcam as an alternative to music therapy for patients.
Some of Moana's fans have even formed friendships after chatting online.
One group of albatross fans flew south to meet up and see the birds first-hand, and created a fundraising calendar featuring their favourite webcam shots.
DoC will choose a new Royal Cam star early next year, and hopes to turn the lens on other threatened species as well.
"Overall it's had a total reach of over one million views. We also had over 90,000 comments on our DoC page from people just desperate to know more about the albatross," DoC's Nicola Toki says.
Newshub.
