Conservation Comment: Time to vote for Te Manu Rongonui o te Tau

Is the bold and adventurous tīeke your pick for Bird of the year? Photo / supplied

Photo: 121022spSTPtieke
Caption: Is the bold and adventurous tīeke your pick for Bird of the year? Photo / supplied
Byline: Margie Beautrais

Did you get your local body vote in on time?

Voting for your favourite local politicians ended on Saturday. If you missed out don't worry, you can vote in another really important election. Voting for Te Manu Rongonui o te Tau - Bird of the Year begins on Monday, October 17.

You've got a couple of weeks to check out the candidates and rank your top five. Last year the endemic bat outflew all the competition to take the top perch. This year, there's no chance of a repeat, with the bat not even a starter in the race. And kākāpō, former two-time winner, is focusing on other things and is not in the running … or the flying.

Te Manu Rongonui o te Tau - Bird of the Year is held, not to elect a head of the flock, but to draw attention to the plight of our precious native birds. In Whanganui we are lucky enough to have Tarapuruhi - Bushy Park Sanctuary in our region. A short drive out to Kai Iwi, turn off onto Rangitatau East Rd, and within a few minutes, you will be immersed in a beautiful rainforest, home to four vulnerable bird species.

Sadly, it takes a predator-proof fence to ensure protection from the fangs and claws of introduced carnivorous mammals. It also takes many hours of work to maintain some species, especially the hihi, or stitchbird, which survives in a few sanctuaries but is in serious trouble nationally. By contrast, the louder, bolder, more enterprising tīeke, or saddleback, is thriving at sanctuaries such as Bushy Park. Tīeke are omnivorous and have a diverse forest diet, from creepy crawlies on the forest floor, to fruit and nectar in the canopy.

The election candidates are all listed on the website: www.birdoftheyear.org.nz. Voters rank their top five birds and Forest and Bird, which runs the competition, is inviting everyone to vote for at least one 'underbird'. In support of our local sanctuary, I'm recommending these five birds to Whanganui voters:

1. Tīeke, commonly known by the strangely equestrian term of saddleback. My all-time favourite and the closest living relative of the extinct huia.

2. Hihi, sometimes called stitch-bird … I have no idea why. Hihi refers to the sunshine-yellow bands across the shoulders of the male. The female is brown, shy and is good at hiding. This bird is in serious trouble.

3. Pōpokatea, also called whitehead, for obvious reasons. They have been recently re-introduced to Bushy Park from nearby Waitahinga and are often referred to as 'bush canaries' because of their trilling song. This sweet little songster is one of the 'underbirds', with a Forest and Bird plea to include it in your vote.

4. Toutouwai, North Island robin, a friendly little bird who will follow you around waiting to grab the insects disturbed as you walk through the forest.

5. Tīpounamu, the rifleman, a khaki-green but very defenceless darling. We hope it will be re-introduced to Bushy Park in the future.

So there you have it: my top five candidates for local loyal voters.

The winning bird will be announced on October 31, Halloween. It could even be 'The Grey Ghost', aka the South Island kōkako, currently classified as extinct.

Winning the competition won't bring the grey ghost or any other bird back from the brink, but it's a great campaign for drawing attention to our native birds. They are all precious taonga.