New Zealand’s fastest bird, the threatened kārearea falcon, has soared to victory in the country’s beloved Bird of the Year competition. Capable of reaching speeds of 200km/h while hunting, the kārearea beat 72 other contenders in a scandal-free year for the often chaotic annual poll.
With only 5,000–8,000 birds remaining, the kārearea is New Zealand’s only endemic falcon and its last surviving raptor. It hunts birds, lizards and small mammals, sometimes larger than itself, but faces major threats from habitat loss, collisions with power lines, and ground predators such as cats, stoats and hedgehogs that raid their exposed nests.
“The kārearea is just a stunning bird,” said Emma Blackburn, chair of the Kārearea Falcon Trust. “It’s our only remaining endemic raptor and a really important part of our ecosystem.”
The Forest & Bird-run competition drew more than 75,000 verified votes from 123 countries. While past years have been rocked by scandals ranging from Russian “interference” to John Oliver’s viral 2023 pūteketeke campaign, this year’s contest passed without controversy.
The kea, New Zealand’s mischievous alpine parrot, came second, while the karure – a rare “goth” black robin from the Chatham Islands – placed third. The kārearea now joins the kākāpō and the hoiho as one of only three species to win the title twice, having first claimed it in 2012.
Forest & Bird chief executive Nicola Toki said the contest carries an important conservation message. “Behind the memes and mayhem is a serious message. This year’s top 10 matches the statistics exactly – 80% of them are in trouble. People fall in love with these birds – and once they know their stories, they care, they advocate and they act.”
