Tūī
Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae
- Family
- Honeyeaters (Meliphagidae)
- Order
- Passeriformes
Overview
The tūī (Prosthemadera novaeseelandiae) is a medium-sized bird native to New Zealand. It is blue, green, and bronze coloured with a distinctive white throat tuft (poi). It is an endemic passerine bird of New Zealand, and the only species in the genus Prosthemadera. It is one of the largest species in the diverse Australasian honeyeater family Meliphagidae, and one of two living species of that family found in New Zealand, the other being the New Zealand bellbird (Anthornis melanura). The tūī has a wide distribution in the archipelago, ranging from the subtropical Kermadec Islands to the sub-Antarctic Auckland Islands, as well as the main islands.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Diet: Nectar, fruit and insects.
How to identify it
- Glossy dark bird with a blue-green-bronze sheen
- Two white tufts at the throat
- Lacy white collar on the neck
Voice
Complex song of clicks, gurgles and bell-like notes.
Where to see it
- Zealandia, Wellington
- Tiritiri Mātangi Island
Range and habitat
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Tūī
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.
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