WELLINGTON ā It's noisy, smelly, shy ā and New Zealandās bird of the year.
The hoiho, or yellow-eyed penguin, won the countryās fiercely fought avian election on Monday, offering hope to supporters of the endangered bird that recognition from its victory might prompt a revival of the species.
Recommended Videos
It followed a campaign for the annual Bird of the Year vote that was without the foreign interference scandals and cheating controversies of past polls. Instead, campaigners in the long-running contest sought votes in the usual ways ā launching meme wars, seeking celebrity endorsements and even getting tattoos to prove their loyalty.
More than 50,000 people voted in the poll, 300,000 fewer than last year, when British late night host John Oliver drove a humorous campaign for the pÅ«teketeke -- a ādeeply weird birdā which eats and vomits its own feathers ā securing a landslide win.
This year, the number of votes cast represented 1% of the population of New Zealand ā a country where nature is never far away and where a love of native birds is instilled in citizens from childhood.
āBirds are our heart and soul,ā said Emma Rawson, who campaigned for the fourth-placed ruru, a small brown owl with a melancholic call. New Zealand's only native mammals are bats and marine species, putting the spotlight on its birds, which are beloved ā and often rare.
This year's victor, the hoiho ā its name means ānoise shouterā in the MÄori language ā is a shy bird thought to be the world's rarest penguin. Only found on New Zealand's South and Chatham islands ā and on subantarctic islands south of the country ā numbers have dropped perilously by 78% in the past 15 years.
āThis spotlight couldnāt have come at a better time. This iconic penguin is disappearing from mainland Aotearoa before our eyes,ā Nicola Toki, chief executive of Forest & Bird ā the organization that runs the poll ā said in a press release, using the MÄori name for New Zealand. Despite intensive conservation efforts on land, she said, the birds drown in nets and sea and can't find enough food.
āThe campaign has raised awareness, but what we really hope is that it brings tangible support,ā said Charlie Buchan, campaign manager for the hoiho. But while the bird is struggling, it attracted a star billing in the poll: celebrity endorsements flew in from English zoologist Jane Goodall, host of the Amazing Race Phil Keoghan, and two former New Zealand prime ministers.
Aspiring bird campaign managers ā this year ranging from power companies to high school students ā submit applications to Forest & Bird for the posts. The hoiho bid was run by a collective of wildlife groups, a museum, a brewery and a rugby team in the city of Dunedin, where the bird is found on mainland New Zealand, making it the highest-powered campaign of the 2024 vote.
āI do feel like we were the scrappy underdog,ā said Emily Bull, a spokesperson for the runner-up campaign, for the karure ā a small, āgothā black robin only found on New Zealandās Chatham Island.
The karure's bid was directed by the studentsā association at Victoria University of Wellington, prompting a fierce skirmish on the college campus when the student magazine staged an opposing campaign for the kororÄ, or little blue penguin.
The rivalry provoked a meme war and students in bird costumes. Several people got tattoos. When the magazineās campaign secured endorsements of the city council and local zoo, Bull despaired for the black robin's bid.
But the karure ā which has performed a real-life comeback since the 1980s, with conservation efforts increasing the species from five birds to 250 ā took second place overall.
This weekend as Rawson wrapped up her campaign for the ruru, she took her efforts directly to the people, courting votes at a local dog park. The veteran campaign manager who has directed the bids for other birds in past years was rewarded by the ruru placing fourth in the poll, her best ever result.
āI have not been in human political campaigning before,ā said Rawson, who is drawn to the competition because of the funds and awareness it generates. The campaign struck a more sedate tone this year, she added.
āThereās been no international interference, even though that was actually a lot of fun,ā she said, referring to Oliverās high-profile campaign.
It was not the only controversy the election has seen. While anyone in the world can vote, Forest & Bird now requires electors to verify their ballots after foreign interference plagued the contest before. In 2018, Australian pranksters cast hundreds of fraudulent votes in favor of the shag.
The following year, Forest & Bird was forced to clarify that a flurry of votes from Russia appeared to be from legitimate bird-lovers.
While campaigns are fiercely competitive, managers described tactics more akin to pro wrestling ā in which fights are scripted ā than divisive political contests.
āSometimes people want to make posts that are kind of like beefy with you and theyāll always message you and be like, hey, is it okay if I post this?ā Bull said. āThere is a really sweet community. It's really wholesome.ā
___
This story corrects percentage to 1% instead of 10%.