Bird of the Year 2022

The tiny alpine dweller narrowly defeated the little blue penguin to take the top spot, with nearly 3000 voters putting it in the top spot. Pīwauwau campaign ...

As climate change got worse, predators could get up higher into the rock wrens' homes, she said. "They don't really have a tail ... It's a true underbird."

The pīwauwau rock wren has won Bird of the Year 2022. After a two-week voting period filled with creative campaigning, a kākāpō controversy, ...

The pīwauwau is a cute little olive bird with a stubby tail and long legs, weighing about the same as a Mallowpuff. The voting closed at 5pm on Sunday, October 30 with 51,856 verified votes cast. “We’re stoked to see our hidden gem underbirds got some recognition! Rock wrens are one of two surviving species (along with titipounamu riflemen) from an ancient wren lineage unique to New Zealand. The pīwauwau received 2,894 number one votes – around 450 fewer than the kororā. They are tiny birds, chock full of character, and like so many other species, they’re threatened by pests and climate change."

Rare alpine species captures narrow win over kororā penguin after campaign marked by controversy.

The competition attracts headlines and political endorsements across New Zealand. “We’re so happy pīwauwau are finally having their time in the spotlight.” This year they courted controversy again by [barring the kākāpō](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/oct/12/new-zealand-bird-of-the-year-contest-favourite-kakapo-blocked) – the world’s fattest parrot – because it had won too many times (twice in 14 years).

"Unless you'd spent some time in the mountains, you'd probably never heard of a rock wren until two weeks ago. It's a true underbird."

The tiny birds' long legs make them the mountaineers of the bird world and they have natural crampons and snowshoes for navigating high altitudes. Despite being ...

Crossing the Divide to the West Coast and Fiordland is where you'll see the wrens. The tiny birds, which weigh less than an AA battery, exist in places where only they and the odd mountaineer dare to go. There is a healthy population on the predator-free Secretary Island in Fiordland, introduced in 2010. Rock wrens are not only battling invasive predators like stoats and rats, but also the threat to habitat from climate change. At the beginning of the month, Forest and Bird was threatened with legal action if it did not include extinct bird species in the running. Legal representatives for the moa are yet to be heard from.

WELLINGTON, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- The endangered small alpine rock wren pīwauwau has won New Zealand's Bird of the Year 2022, the event organizer announced on ...

"It's been awesome to see enthusiasm for our native birdlife shine during these past two weeks," said Bird of the Year spokes-human Ellen Rykers. As New Zealand's only true alpine bird, these tiny wrens are already feeling the impacts of warmer temperatures, which allow predators like rats and stoats to climb higher and invade their mountaintop homes." "The pīwauwau win proves New Zealanders love an underbird," said Forest & Bird Chief Executive Nicola Toki.