Chaffinch
Chaffinches were imported to New Zealand. They are widespread throughout mainland New Zealand as well as offshore islands. They are the most widespread of New Zealand's introduced finches. Seeds are the dominant food source for chaffinches but they will also eat a variety of insects.
Chaffinches have white feathers on their shoulders, as well as on parts of their wings and tails. Males have a greyish crown and pinky-brown feathers. Females are mostly brownish grey.
Fantail/Piwakawaka
Fantails get their name from their beautiful fan-like tail. They are endemic to New Zealand. They are a common bird and can be found in a wide-range of habitats around the country. They weigh about the same as two teaspoons of sugar. A fantail's diet is mainly made up of small insects, such as flies and beetles. They occasionally eat fruit.
There are two different colours of fantails that exist. One is the pied fantail, it has a grey head and white eyebrows. They have a brown body with some white and black feathers. The other type has mainly black feathers. Pied fantails are more prevalent than black fantails.
Bellbird/Korimako
The bellbird is also known as the korimako or makomako in Māori. They are endemic to New Zealand are often recognised by their unique bell-like song. They are mainly found south of Hamilton. Bellbirds prefer to live in forests and scrub but can also be discovered in some nearby gardens. Korimako mainly eat nectar, they occasionally also eat fruit and berries. They also "glean" or pick insects and spiders from tree trunks and leaves.
Male bellbirds are olive green with purple feathers on their hands. Females are brown and have a yellowish stripe across their cheeks. The bellbirds have red eyes.
Tūi
Tūi are another endemic species of New Zealand. They can be found throughout New Zealand. With a diet of nectar and honeydew, they feed from flowering trees such as kōwhai and flax. Tūi can be bad-tempered. They chase away other birds from "their" trees. They are very vocal birds with a beautiful song. They can produce a range of sounds, including coughs and grunts.
Tūi have gleaming green and bluey-purple feathers. They have two white tufts called poi and some fine white feathers around their necks.
Song Thrush
Introduced to New Zealand in the late 1800s, thrushes are now common in most habitats. Their diet consists of snails, slugs, worms and other insects. They also eat some berries and ripening fruits. To break snail shells open, they often use stones and they sometimes return to the same ones. Piles of broken shells can be discovered beside these favourite stones.
Thrushes have brown feathers covering their backs and white speckled underbellies. Their bill is yellow and their legs are pink.
House Sparrow
House sparrows were brought to New Zealand so that they could eat insects that were destroying crops. They rapidly grew in numbers and did more damage to the crops than the insects. Sparrows are most abundant in the north and dry eastern areas of New Zealand. Sparrows eat grains and seeds, including crops such as wheat and barley. Sparrows like to travel in flocks, with several hundred sometimes roosting together.
Male sparrows have a brown crown and a black bib. Females are brown but they have darker back feathers and a grey/white underbelly.
