Today is the last day to vote for the Bird of the Year - the popular competition that also shows the threatened status of some of the country's native birds.
Contenders include from top left: morepork, godwit, mohua and the bellbird. Photo: Supplied/ Wikimedia Commons/ 123RF / B Harcourt / Glen Fergus
The popular Forest and Bird competition stirs up controversy and fun each year, with campaigns for favourite native birds run by fans and organisations, such as Federated Farmers.
Read and listen to The Detail's backgrounder on the serious message behind a fun competition.
- Voting has opened for the most fiercely contested election of the year.
This is the first time voters will be able to rank their preferences for the birds, instead of the first-past-the-post system used previously.
Voters can select up to five birds in order of preference.
The kererū won top spot in last year's competition in which about 50,000 votes were cast.
Forest and Bird spokesperson Laura Keown told RNZ at the start of voting that although the competition is light-hearted, it also raised awareness of New Zealand's native birds and the threats they face.
"When you visit the bird of the year website you can see the threats facing our birds and unfortunately over three-quarters of our birds are in serious trouble and may be facing extinction."
Votes must be made online by 5pm.
