The bellbird is an endemic bird to New Zealand whose calls are quite pleasing to hear. Here are 7 facts about this bird.
I live in the Taranaki area of New Zealand and as such I am not as familiar with these birds as with others. I don’t see bellbirds as often as other birds, such as kereru, tui, and fantail. However, I have seen them in other parts of New Zealand. These birds make such a cool sound that I’ve heard and been stopped in my tracks as I wondered what it came from. Hopefully, widespread predator control efforts will help these birds become more common across New Zealand and in Taranaki.
7 Bellbird Facts
The bellbird is called korimako or makomako in Maori. The korimako is endemic to New Zealand, meaning it can’t be found anywhere else in the world.
This is a widespread native bird of New Zealand’s forests. It can be found in both podocarp/broadleaf and beech forests across the north and south island. They live in areas near the coast up to 1,200 meters in altitude, as long as there is some vegetation.
When Europeans first arrived these birds were common all over both the north and south islands. However, after the introduction of mammalian predators in the mid-1800s these birds became much less common. They are now more common and widespread on the south island than the north island.
A bellbird sounds like its name, a bell. Here is an example of what a bellbird sounds like. This is a recording of a male adult bellbird.
The korimako is one of the native birds that is impacted by the introduced mammalian predators (stoats, rats, and such). This bird is widespread in New Zealand, but it’s numbers are low due to these introduced predators.
These birds are a type of honeyeater, a bird that mainly feeds on nectar. They mainly sip nectar from native and introduced plants. However, they also feed on fruits and will even eat insects.
These birds serve an important role in the ecology of a forest. By sipping the nectar, they inadvertently help pollinate the flowers so that the plant can reproduce. When they eat fruit they help spread the seeds of the plant.