The iconic Huia was the largest of the five New Zealand wattlebird species.
It was a striking large songbird, mainly black with long white-tipped tail feathers. Female and male Huia had dramatically different bill sizes and shapes; this was the most extreme sexual bill dimorphism of any bird species.
A fleshy orange wattle hung at the base of each side of the bill, and was often held pressed under the chin. Maori named the bird after its loud distress call, described as "a smooth, unslurred whistle rendered as uia, uia, uia or where are you?"
The last accepted sighting was in 1907, but it is likely that a few Huia persisted into the 1920s.
Huia metal art
763mm x 600mm
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