Survival of the cutest
Tue, 10 Aug 2010 12:30 pm – Posted by Mandy | 7 Comments
Blogger: Forest & Bird’s Lower North Island Field Officer Aalbert Rebergen
Avian citizenry in this country is a mind-boggling, byzantine thing - something that is given and then snatched away at the whim of government based on fickle, flimsy criteria.
Rook, photo: creative commons
Take for example – the rook – an introduced bird that was brought here to control insects and remind settlers of home.
It comes from a family of hooligans - such as jays and crows – and shares their hoarse cry and plucky demeanour.
Reviled by many, this bird has been the target of much persecution, and many would like to see it wiped from the face of New Zealand care of a few humanely-aimed bullets.