26/09/2025
🐦 Voting is still open for Forest & Bird’s Bird of the Year 2025! This year, make sure you cast your vote for the majestic, mysterious, magical matuku!
Why back the bittern?
🥷 Ninja of the wetlands – With epic camouflage and a freeze stance, matuku can disappear right before your eyes. Who wouldn’t want to support a bird with hide-and-seek skills like that?
📢 Master Boomer – Ever heard a bird that sounds like a distant foghorn? That’s the matuku! Who doesn’t love a bird that can rock a subwoofer?
🕴️ Tall, dark, and handsome – Elegant posture, sleek plumage… the James Bond of the bird world. Vote matuku and add a touch of class to your birdwatching adventures!
🏡 Respectful neighbours – These beautiful bittern aren't going to sneak into your house and fly around like some other birds we know 👀. They respect your boundaries by staying in their preferred habitat, the wetlands.
💚 Endangered elegance – With numbers declining, the matuku needs all the love it can get. Voting for this majestic bird helps raise awareness and support conservation efforts. Plus, who wouldn’t want to help save a rare and regal species?
Vote matuku-hūrepo / Australasian bittern for Bird of the Year 2025 and show some love for Aotearoa’s wetlands! 🌿
Love Bittern Bittern Conservation - New Zealand Vote for Matuku . The elusive Bittern
