This evening Radio NZ rebroadcast a 2016 interview between host Jessie Mulligan and sound archivist Sarah Johnston, about the only recording we have of what the extinct huia bird sounds like.

We lost the huia in the early 1900s, before recording equipment was available, but what we do have is a recording from the late 1940s of Hēnare Hāmana mimicking the calls of the male and female huia. Some North Island Māori were expert at making huia calls, used to lure the birds in to catch them (in part for their valued feathers). Hēnare had been part of a (failed) expedition into the Ruahine Ranges around 1900 to try and catch huia to bring them into captivity to try and prevent their extinction.

While RNZ doesn't have the interview on its website "due to copyright restrictions", the original recording by Hēnare Hāmana is available below on the website of Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision.

It's sad but worth a listen. We came so close to still having these remarkable birds around.

https://www.ngataonga.org.nz/explore-stories/stories/sound/te-karanga-a-te-huia-the-call-of-the-huia/

#RNZ #huia #birds #BirdSong #extinction #nz

"A lot of expectation has been piled on Te #Huia to achieve both significant increases in patronage and increased farebox #revenue in a short space of time. No such expectations are placed on new #roads when they open, where #uncongested journeys on an empty #road is seen as a sign of success, not failure."

"Te Huia, the regional train between #Hamilton and #Auckland, has been given a one-year life extension. But it needs more bums on seats to ensure it becomes permanent. Read on for more.
Darren Davis
Mar 23, 2026"

https://greaterauckland.substack.com/p/te-huia-what-comes-next

Word Search Puzzle 732

Word List : #gradal #cebell #alcamine #compadre #cocamama #chimbe #omniform #moodish #linseeds #vyrnwy #peplumed #lulls #equinate #lobuli #tuebor #spue #gliadins #huia

http://karafinance.com/2024/02/27/word-search-puzzle-732/

December 2023 calendar in A4 size for printing. Click (or tap) on photo to open by itself, then save to your device and print from there. I make a new one each month and stick on my fridge. Photo is mine so feel free to redistribute.

Pohutukawa tree, Huia. Aotearoa New Zealand. -36.99896404977294, 174.56743409400983

#calendar #NewZealand #photo #Aotearoa #Huia