The endangered Karearea, New Zealand’s fastest bird, was declared the winner of the annual bird of the year competition 2025 on Monday. There are approximately 5,000 to 8,000 karearea left in the country.
The voting, which took place online, saw more than 75,000 voters from 123 countries rank their favourite bird, according to New Zealand's Forest & Bird Chief Executive Nicola Toki.
The intensified voting came after popular American Last Week Tonight show host John Oliver playfully volunteered as a campaign manager. Toki said, “Behind memes and mayhem is a serious message.”
The kārearea, a protected bird, is capable of flying at speeds of up to 200 kilometres (124 miles) per hour to capture its prey. The kārearea, the Indigenous Maori name for the New Zealand falcon, is threatened in the country, especially due to habitat loss and predation.
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According to the New Zealand wildlife conservation body, there are an estimated 5,000 to 8,000 remaining falcons in the country. Phil Bradfield, a trustee of the Karearea Falcon Trust in Marlborough, located on New Zealand's South Island, described the karearea as "fast and sneaky and very special," saying it rightfully earned the Bird of the Year title.
“Besides beauty, these birds are mysterious because they are cryptic; they're often well-hidden," he said. According to some international research, more than 80 per cent of the countries' bird species are facing varying levels of threat.
"Successive governments in New Zealand have cumulatively reduced investment in conservation, which is the cornerstone of New Zealand's economic prosperity," Toki said. "People come here to see our native birds and the places they live in," she added. "They're not coming here to see shopping malls."
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