Little-known pīwauwau rock wren named as New Zealand’s 2022 bird of the year

The pīwauwau rock wren, a diminutive mountain-dwelling underdog, has come out on top in New Zealand’s annual bird of the year competition after a hard-fought campaign again marked by controversy.

The rare alpine species – which weighs less than 20g, about as much as a MallowPuff biscuit – beat out a number of higher-profile and charismatic competitors.

“Unless you’d spent some time in the mountains, you’d probably never heard of a rock wren until two weeks ago,” said Stephen Day, who led a campaign for the pīwauwau. “We’re so happy pīwauwau are finally having their time in the spotlight.”

The mountainous species captured a narrow win over the kororā penguin, which received more No 1 votes but lost out on the transferable vote system.

The competition is no stranger to controversy. Last year organisers caused outcry by allowing a native bat to enter – and win. This year they courted controversy again by barring the kākāpō – the world’s fattest parrot – because it had won too many times (twice in 14 years).

The competition attracts headlines and political endorsements across New Zealand. The National party leader, Christopher Luxon, made a formal announcement on Sunday endorsing the wrybill, a river bird believed to have the world’s only asymmetrical beak – it curves to the right. The Green MP Chlöe Swarbrick ran a campaign for the kororā, and greeted news of the penguin’s narrow loss by expressing “heartbreak” at the “hard-fought” outcome.

The prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, did not endorse a bird this year but, when questioned by reporters about the outcome, said she was loyal to the black petrel, which she has previously described as “the bogan of the birds”.

The election is run by the conservation organisation Forest and Bird to raise awareness of New Zealand’s native bird life. Its chief executive, Nicola Toki, said a vote for pīwauwau was “a vote for climate action”.

“As Aotearoa’s only true alpine bird, these tiny wrens are already feeling the impacts of warmer temperatures, which allow predators like rats and stoats to climb higher and invade their mountaintop homes.”

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