New Zealand’s Bird of Century poll winner revealed after ‘alarmingly aggressive’ campaign by John Oliver

US talk show host had said ‘this is what democracy is all about – America interfering in foreign elections’

The pūteketeke has won New Zealand’s Bird of the Century poll after a spirited campaign by British-American comedian John Oliver.

The comedian, who has a deep fascination with New Zealand, revealed on his show earlier this month that Last Week Tonight has taken on the role of the “official campaign manager” for the pūteketeke or the Australasian crested grebe in New Zealand’s annual Bird of the Year competition.

Oliver launched a vigorous global campaign for the pūteketeke. He described them as “weird puking birds with colourful mullets”.

The annual competition, which commenced in 2005, was “clearly the biggest one yet” in 2023, with Forest and Bird – the environmental conservation organisation which runs the contest – aiming to find the Bird of the Century to celebrate its 100th year.

More than 350,000 people voted from 195 countries in the contest, with the pūteketeke claiming 290,374, or about 83 per cent of the total votes.

The second place went to the north island brown kiwi, which received 12,904 votes, and third to the kea with 12,060.

The announcement of the winner was postponed for two days due to a flood of votes triggered by Oliver’s intervention. Oliver had a billboard erected for “The Lord of the Wings” in New Zealand’s capital, Wellington. He bought up billboards in Japan, France, the UK, India, and the US state of Wisconsin.

A plane carrying a pūteketeke campaign banner also flew over the beaches of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, according to reports. He appeared wearing the pūteketeke costume on Jimmy Fallon’s The Tonight Show to promote the bird. He described his own campaign as “alarmingly aggressive”.

“After all, this is what democracy is all about,” Oliver said on his show. “America interfering in foreign elections.”

His campaign wasn’t without controversy. It sparked a collective pushback from many groups in New Zealand who agreed it was “American interference” in the avian election – but didn’t necessarily see the funny side.

Supporters of kakariki karaka – a green parakeet – erected billboards in response to Oliver’s campaign which read: “Dear John, don’t disrupt the pecking order”.

The contest has survived previous controversies. Election scrutineers in 2020 discovered about 1,500 fraudulent votes for the little spotted kiwi. And two years ago, the contest was won by a bat, which was allowed because it was considered part of the bird family by Indigenous Māori.

The pūteketeke is classified by the Department of Conservation as nationally vulnerable – which means that the species is at a heightened risk of extinction in the medium term.

With a population of fewer than 1000 in New Zealand, the pūteketeke has never won the Bird of the Year competition.

“Congratulations to campaign manager John Oliver and all those who gave their support to the pūteketeke,” New Zealand’s incoming prime minister Christopher Luxon wrote on X/Twitter.

The birds are native to New Zealand, but can also be found in Australia, Europe and central/southern Asia.

“It’s great to have a successful bird as an ambassador for all New Zealand birds to show that even threatened species can bounce back if we give them a hand,” Petrina Duncan, Forest and Bird’s grebe coordinator for its Central Otago Lakes Branch was quoted as saying by New Zealand’s Stuff.

Forest and Bird chief executive Nicola Toki said the pūteketeke “catapulted to the top spot thanks to its unique looks, adorable parenting style, and propensity for puking”.