Long-Tailed Bat Swoops In And Wins New Zealand’s Bird Of The Year

Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/bat-wins-new-zealand-bird-of-the-year/

After two weeks of voting, New Zealand’s Bird of the Year has been announced.

This year’s winner is not a bird…but a long-tailed bat.

Forest & Bird, New Zealand’s nonprofit conservation organization, holds an annual virtual contest to name the “Bird of the Year” and raise awareness for threatened native birds. This year they included for the first time a land mammal, the pekapeka-tou-roa, and it won!

Voting closed at 5pm on Sunday with over 56,000 votes casted, making it the largest participation ever in the “Bird of the Year” contest.

After tallying all the votes, the winner was announced on Facebook.

The nonprofit wrote, “Holy flying mammals Batman! The pekapeka has won Bird of the Year/Te Manu Rongonui o Te Tau for 2021! 🦇🏆 Despite being our only endemic land mammal, most people don’t even know they exist, which makes their win even more outstanding.”

The long-tailed bat claimed the most votes (7,031) on its first time ever in the contest. This monumental win has shocked the contest organizers and ruffled the feathers of some bird lovers.

“I think I’m going to be fired,” Forest & Bird’s Bird of the Year spokesperson Laura Keown said in a press release.

The critically endangered mammal was included in the contest because of its conservation status. The bat population, like many bird species, has been declining for years due to introduced predators and habitat loss.

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“The campaign to raise awareness and support for this little flying furball has captured the nation,” stated Keown.

Most people are happy the native bat is finally get some attention.

“Wow, as much as I adore the birds I’m pretty stoked these guys have had some much needed press. Absolutely brilliant,” wrote one person.

But some bird lovers are upset by the winner. They adamantly state that bats are not birds and should not have been included in the contest.

One person commented on behalf of all the native birds and said, “On behalf of the collective of avians, we strongly object to a bat usurping our title of bird of the year. While we sympathise with its endangered status, a bat is not a bird. A bat belongs in a belfry.🦇 A bat is batty🦇 It may have wings, 2legs and a beak, It doesn’t build nests, nor it doesn’t lay eggs. Perhaps you will have to change your name this year to FOREST AND BATS. signed NZ birds.🦅🦉🐧🐦🐤🐥🦜.”

Keown said, “A vote for bats is also a vote for predator control, habitat restoration, and climate action to protect our bats and their feathered neighbours!”

Conservationists may have added the bat to the contest, but the flying mammal won by acquiring the most public votes.

Here are the top five winners according to votes:

Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog