Kākāpō wins bird of the year for the second unprecedented time

By RNZ

The votes are accepted and the result is conclusive: the kākāpō won the Bird of the Year award for an unprecedented second time.

The victory is despite a desperate attempt to steal the election by the dark forces of the small tainted kiwi lobby.

Throughout the two-week voting period, the Antipodean albatross topped the leaderboard with the most number one votes, however the kākāpō jumped to the top with the most votes overall once the preferential voting system was applied.

The green, flightless, nocturnal parrot becomes the first bird in the competition’s history to achieve a repeat victory.

He first won Forest & Bird’s annual Te Manu Rongonui or Te Tau / Bird of the Year contest in 2008.

Critically endangered birds used to live on Aotearoa, but today they only survive on predator-free islands.

“There were only about 50 birds in the 1990s and they have been saved thanks to intense conservation efforts. Today there are 213 individuals,” said Bird of the Year spokeswoman Laura Keown.

“This is the first time that a bird has won the Bird of the Year title more than once, so New Zealand’s mighty Moss Chicken can add another feather to its hat.”

Voting fraud was discovered during the competition when Dragonfly Data Science volunteer scrutineers found 1,500 votes cast around 3 a.m. from the same IP address, all for the smallest (and cutest) kiwi species, pukupuku kiwi / spotted kiwi. little.

Infamously, the humble but polygamous hihi attracted the backing of the Adult Toy Megastore, as well as that of the Deputy Prime Minister, the Phoenix soccer team and the Central Pulse Netball team.

55,583 validated votes were cast in 2020, up from 43,460 in 2019, and the most ever received in the competition’s history.

Top 10 winners with instant second round preferential voting applied:

1. blind

2. Bull albatross / antipodes

3. Kakaruia / robin

4. Kārearea / New Zealand Falcon

5. Pigeons

6. Banded pohowera / dotterel

7. Fight

8. Ruru / morepork

9. Whio / blue duck

10. Pīwakawaka / fan tail