New Zealand’s weka is a curious bird that can be seen across the country. Here are 7 facts to reveal more about this native bird.
The first time I saw a weka I was pretty excited. We were at some roadside attraction on the South Island getting out of the car and then all of a sudden a bird walked out of the bush by us. We didn’t really know what it was and enjoyed watching it walk around us seeing what we were up to. These birds are very curious around people and will see what they can get, i.e. food. On the Heaphy Track we lost some snacks to weka and my son even lost his sock when we removed our shoes on a beach, so you do need to be careful around them.
7 Weka Facts
The weka is another one of the large, iconic, flightless New Zealand native birds. Unlike the kiwi, whose wings are almost gone, this bird still has large wings. This bird may not be able to fly, but it can run quite fast.
Weka can be found on all major islands, but are absent from large parts of the country. They can be found in a variety of habitats – forest, coast, pasture, wetlands, and alpine areas. These birds are primarily a forest bird, in contrast to pukeko and takahe (other flightless native birds) that are mainly found in open country.
There are in fact four subspecies of weka (North Island weka, western weka, Stewart Island weka, and buff weka). This is a large flightless bird with red eyes, measuring 50 – 60 cm. They have a strong pointed bill and red feet (that may not be webbed, but the bird can still swim). These birds vary in colour between greyish/brown to brown or brown/black.
As I mentioned earlier, these birds are very curious and are commonly seen around people. They will wander around people, attempting to get food. In some areas you need to be on guard and careful that these birds don’t steal your food or other items.
Weka have declined in many parts of the country, most likely due to predation by introduced mammals – mainly ferrets, stoats, and dogs. Another possible cause of their decline is disease. Some of the main areas to see these birds include: Marlborough Sounds, along west coast of South Island, Fiordland, Rakiura Island, Gisborne, Bay of Plenty, and the Northland.
Weka have a long breeding season, able to have up to 4 broods during a season, with up to 4 eggs at a time. The peak breeding season is from August to January. Just because they can have 4 broods a season doesn’t necessarily mean they will. Some pairs of weka may breed several times in one year while others only breed once every couple of years.
These birds have a varied diet – fruit, invertebrates, lizards, eggs, birds, and more. These birds will eat eggs and young birds from the nests of other birds, including petrels.