Black Stilt (himantopus novaezelandiae)
Kaki

Size: 40 cm, 220gm

Description: Pure black stilt with metallic green sheen in direct light. Long pink legs, long fine black bill very slightly upturned, red eye. Juveniles have white head, neck and breast, becoming mottled and darker through its first year. Often hybridizes with pied stilt.

Habitat: Braided river beds, deltas and lake margins in the Mackenzie basin. Some migrate to northern estuaries after breeding.

Status: Protected endangered endemic. Once critically endangered (<30 birds) now still endangered, the captive breeding program has raised numbers to >160 birds.

Breeding: September - January. Solitary breeders, on braided river beds near wetlands.

Where to photograph: Public viewing hide near Twizel.

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