Last weekend the annual Bird of the Year vote concluded with the New Zealand Pigeon/Kereru taking the top spot for 2018 and dethroning the Kea which was winner in 2017. Bird of the Year is run by Forest and Bird to raise awareness of New Zealand birds and their habitat. A significant number of our endemic species are under threat due to habitat loss and predation by introduced predators.
It seems fitting that Kereru have been selected a Bird of the Year as they have been in the media recently with some proposing that they have their protected status removed so that they can be harvested for food. Traditionally Kereru were an important food source for Maori and some believe that it has special healing properties which can help ailing people recover their health. This results in some illegal hunting which is one of the threats it faces. Compared to many other native birds it is not endangered and is a relatively common sight. Introduced mammals, especially possums, rats, stoats and feral cats are it’s main threats especially when nesting.
Kereru can travel quite large distances for seasonal food sources and are an important mechanism for seed dispersal and native plant revegetation. They can be very fixated when feeding, allowing close approach. They also can become inebriated when gorging on fermented fruit. This can resut in some comical performances of staggering birds who have fallen out of their tree.
Photos with Nikon 500mm f4 VR lens and Nikon D500 or D3s
Denise Poyner
21 Oct 2018Hi Tony
I really like the second shot with the Kereru’s wings tipped upwards at the end. Seems a lot of birds can do that with their feathers. I voted for Kahu as it’s one of my more favourite birds. Glad though the Kereru came in top this year in the Bird of the Year award. Kind regards, Denise Poyner
tony
21 Oct 2018Hi Denise,
Thanks for your comments. The flight feathers curve up on the downstroke of the wing and it does look lovely. My vote this year was for Kaki but we only came in 3rd. It’s alway hard to choose as I like all the birds. Did I see some lovely Bittern/Matuku photos that you had taken recently?
Best wishes,
Tony