Pukeko - NZ native swamp hen

This male pukeko was showing off to a couple of females (who weren't taking any notice - too busy eating!)

Annoyingly I couldn't get around the stick to get him in the clear, so it's a pukeko complete with stick.

They are a big bird and reasonably confident around people, but they are wily too, so it's hard to get a decent shot of them sometimes.

Pukekos are rails, a type of bird spread all round the world, although pukeko are native to NZ. They are one of the very few birds to have flourished since the arrival of people in NZ.

they are often found along the road especially in country areas as this is where the swampy drains are, the area most like their original food source of raupo swamp. Diet is a wide variety of swamp and pasture vegetation but also insects, frogs, small birds and eggs. They have become common on farmland and are regarded as a pest for their damage to grain and vegetable crops. they also get run over frequently as they have no fear of vehicles.