34 He aha tērā? What is that?

Lift a lid on a damp, shady item near your house and you may find one of these. It’s about as long and thick as your finger, greyish with speckles in a kind of striped pattern along its body. He aha tērā? What is that?

A long thick speckled creature oozing along a piece of wood, with hand beside for size.
Photo by Miraz Jordan. Used with permission.

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33 He aha tērā? What is that?

Adults of this almost sparrow-sized but lighter bird have a bright red, white and black face. It’s a pale coloured bird with a distinctive bright yellow stripe on its black wing. They’re often seen in flocks. If you hear a shrill, clear pee-yu, that’s this bird. He aha tērā? What is that?

A pale coloured bird with a distinctive bright yellow stripe on its wing.
Photo by Miraz Jordan. Used with permission. A juvenile, stunned after flying into a window.

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32 He aha tērā? What is that?

You may see this squat bird hunched on your washing line or on a power line. Or maybe it’ll suddenly dive down to the ground and come back up with a lizard or bug in its large black bill. Green above and creamy-beige below, you’ll know this bird when you see it. He aha tērā? What is that?

Squat bird, dark above and light below with distinctive stubby black beak, atop a washing line.
Photo by Miraz Jordan. Used with permission.

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31 He aha tērā? What is that?

This boisterous, medium-sized dark coloured bird chortles and squawks, cough, grunts and wheezes when it’s not singing prettily. Commonly seen feeding on flax flowers, it has an erratic whirring flight. It’s best known though for the white tufts at its throat. He aha tērā? What is that?

On a flax stem, medium sized dark bird with distinctive white wattles on its throat.
Photo by Kezna Cameron. Used with permission.

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29 He aha tērā? What is that?

This medium sized brown bird sings from treetops and forages for snails, worms, spiders and slugs. Its speckled chest is very distinctive. Most people will be familiar with this common bird. He aha tērā? What is that?

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Photo by Kezna Cameron. Used with permission.

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