Latest news with #EllenRykers
RNZ News
9 hours ago
- General
- RNZ News
Twenty years of 'Bird of the Year' in one book
The Australasian Crested Grebe won Bird of the Century in 2023. Photo: Dave Thomas E koekoe te tūī, e ketekete te kākā, e kūkū te kererū - The tūī chatters, the kākā cackles and the kererū coos. That is a whakataukī (proverb) mentioning just three of the 80 birds - and one bat - included in the new Bird of the Year book. Writer Ellen Rykers, the former campaign lead, told Saturday Morning that New Zealand's largest book publisher, Penguin Random House, had asked Forest & Bird to turn the competition into a book subject. "At the time, I was part of the team organising Bird of the Year and, with my background in science writing, it just sort of seemed like a natural fit for me to take on this project," she said. Rykers said the book was a "feast for the eyes", with more than a dozen illustrators, who were selected, "not only because they draw beautiful birds, but because they also are dedicated to supporting conservation through their work". "Even if you don't dive into the words, it's just beautiful to look at." Photo: Supplied / Penguin Books New Zealand To decide which native birds - and bat - were included, Rykers went back through the last 20 years of the Bird of the Year competition and chose ones that had interesting stories - whether they be related to the competition - from television host John Oliver and rumours of Russian interference to controversial mammalian infiltration or their histories. "I mean, it's all fun and humorous, but there is that kind of serious undertone," she said. "More than 80 percent of our native birds are at risk or threatened with extinction, but at the end of the day, I hope that people read it and fall in love, and feel hopeful, because a lot of the stories are about people who are out there on the ground, making a difference." Ellen Rykers Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon Rykers added the three main things threatening our manu were predators, habitat loss and climate change. However, she said the Bird of the Year competition had become a fundraiser for Forest & Bird, particularly in 2023, when the pūteketeke, also known as the Australasian crested grebe, was named the Bird of the Century , after a campaign by Oliver. The competition raised more than $1.2 million . "Forest & Bird didn't really have any idea, ahead of time, exactly the scale of the campaign. We knew that it would be beyond anything that we'd ever seen before and we knew that there would be sort of international aspects, but we didn't realise that he'd be paying for billboards on the busiest intersection in Tokyo and on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. "That really propelled quite an unknown bird - an under the radar bird or an 'underbird' - into the spotlight." A shot from US comedian John Oliver's segment on New Zealand's Bird of the Year on 5 November 2023. Photo: Screengrab Rykers said it did not start out that way. "It didn't raise any money back in 2005, when it started, but it has become a way for people to express that love for birds, by supporting them financially, as well as with their vote." The competition had also grown considerably since then. "I think partly it's because we're a nation of birdlovers and we have named ourselves after one of our national birds, so it's really part of our identity as New Zealanders, but we also don't like to take ourselves too seriously, so there's that cheeky quality, I think, that really appeals. "Those two kind of things, I think, have really propelled Bird of the Year to become a fixture on our annual calendar." There had been scandals in the competition - even to the origin of Bird of the Year , which was when RNZ's Morning Report had suggested getting rid of the daily bird call. "This provoked such an outrage," Rykers said. "Michael Szabo, who was the communications manager at Forest & Bird at the time, took notice of this and he listened to all these people sending in messages about all the birds that they loved. "He had come across this concept of a Bird of the Year competition working in Europe... and he thought, 'Okay, this is a great opportunity to give this a go here in New Zealand'." Including the pekapeka-tou-roa - or the long-tailed bat - was another one. "There was a Forest & Bird staff member, Debs Martin, who had been campaigning quietly for its inclusion for a long time. "At the same time, a high school teacher, Peter Wills, he had the exact same idea. 'Why don't we put the pekapeka-tou-roa in Bird of the Year ?', and so he and his students, and a bat expert took on that campaign. "We only have a couple of native bat species, so there's never going to be a Bat of the Year , but they face many of the same threats that our native birds do." There had been voting scandals - in 2015, two teenage girls tried to rig the results in favour of the kōkako. In 2018, one person voted for the shag more than 3000 times, while in 2017, fake email accounts were created to bolster support for the white-faced heron. In 2020, about 1500 fraudulent votes were cast for the kiwi pukupuku, but Rykers said the first scandal actually happened in 2010. "Somehow, it infiltrated an online community of people really passionate about the kākāriki. "At the time, the Bird of the Year website was admittedly quite flimsy... and they just saw this huge explosion in votes that was someone manipulating the numbers. "They were quite nervous about admitting that and so they didn't actually say anything until the year after." Voting for the 2025 Bird of the Year competition will open on 15 September. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Ellen Rykers - Bird of the Year
Kiwis love our birds. Each year, thousands of New Zealanders take part in Forest & Bird's campaign to bring awareness to the challenges these feathery friends face and to see who comes out on top as the coveted Bird of the Year. From John Oliver and rumours of Russian interference to controversial mammalian infiltration, this beautifully illustrated book profiles more than 80 native birds - and one bat. Bird of the Year is written by award-winning journalist and former campaign lead Ellen Rykers. The book swoops into the competition's backstory while showcasing incredible illustrations from more than a dozen top wildlife artists. Photo: Penguin Random House
Scoop
09-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scoop
Two Decades Of Ruffled Feathers - Bird Of The Year Turns 20
Forest & Bird's iconic Bird of the Year competition is celebrating its 20th anniversary – two decades of campaigning, squawking, strategising, and sparking real action for our native birds. What began as a humble poll by mailout is now a major moment in Aotearoa New Zealand's conservation calendar. Over the years, it has inspired classroom debates, political memes, and even international fame – all in the name of celebrating the weird, wonderful, and endangered manu of Aotearoa. To mark the milestone, Forest & Bird is launching a new book: Bird of the Year: Twenty years of ruffled feathers – A celebration of the birds of Aotearoa, written by award-winning journalist and former campaign lead Ellen Rykers. The book dives deep into the competition's backstory – the scandals, surprises, and the species that stole our hearts – while showcasing incredible illustrations from more than a dozen top wildlife artists. 'Bird of the Year has always been more than a popularity contest,' says Forest & Bird chief executive Nicola Toki. 'It connects people to our precious wildlife and inspires action – from backyard trapping to conservation careers.' Each year, the competition shines a spotlight on birds in trouble. Some species, like the kakī black stilt, have soared from obscurity to national fame. Others, like the kākāpō, have used their Bird of the Year wins to rally support for urgent recovery programmes. 'People fall in love with these birds – and that's powerful,' says author Ellen Rykers. 'Once they know the story of the tūturuatu shore plover or the pekapeka-tou-roa long-tailed bat, they care. They act. They advocate.' And the fight's far from over. With 80% of New Zealand's native birds in trouble, Forest & Bird is using this anniversary to remind voters: your vote counts. Not just in the ballot box, but in the bush, in communities and at the decision-making table. Bird of the Year: Twenty years of ruffled feathers – A celebration of the birds of Aotearoa is published by Penguin Random House New Zealand and will be available for purchase from bookstores in late August. Royalties from the sale of each book will go to Forest & Bird to support its mahi. 2025 COMPETITION DATES Today Forest & Bird is also announcing the dates for the 2025 competition. Voting opens: Monday 15 September Voting closes: Sunday 28 September CAMPAIGN MANAGERS WANTED
RNZ News
28-05-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Our Changing World: Inside a fire lab
science environment 28 May 2025 New Zealand experiences more than 4,500 wildfires every year – and the risk of big, destructive wildfires is increasing with climate change. Ellen Rykers visits the fire lab at the University of Canterbury, a purpose-built facility for setting things on fire and studying how they burn. Researchers can burn couches or create fire tornadoes. But today, Ellen is with PhD researcher and firefighter Kate Melnick, who is researching gorse, a prickly shrub that is both common and flammable. We join Kate as she sets up a large gorse bush in the lab, ready to burn.
