Best bird a bat: tiny flying mammal wins New Zealand bird of the year competition

No stunt, say organisers, who wanted to raise awareness of the pekapeka-tou-roa, which faces the same threats as native birds

In a huge upset to New Zealand birds, but a win for one of the country’s only native land mammals, a bat has swooped in “by a long way” to take out the annual bird of the year competition.

Forest and Bird, which runs the election, thew the bat among the pigeons as a surprise entry this year. The pekapeka-tou-roa, or long tailed bat, is one of two bats in the country and one of the rarest mammals in the world. It is as small as a thumb, and the size of a bumblebee when it is born.

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source https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/01/best-bird-a-bat-tiny-flying-mammal-wins-new-zealand-bird-of-the-year-competition

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