The New Zealand Fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa) is a small insectivorous bird. A common fantail

Fantail

Fantails are small insectivorous birds of southern Asia and Australasia belonging to the genus Rhipidura in the family Rhipiduridae...

 found in the South Island

South Island

The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...

 of New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

, also in the North Island

North Island

The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...

 as subspecies Rhipidura fuliginosa placabilis, the Chatham Islands

Chatham Islands

The Chatham Islands are an archipelago and New Zealand territory in the Pacific Ocean consisting of about ten islands within a radius, the largest of which are Chatham Island and Pitt Island. Their name in the indigenous language, Moriori, means Misty Sun...

 as Rhipidura fuliginosa penita and formerly (now extinct) the Lord Howe Island

Lord Howe Island

Lord Howe Island is an irregularly crescent-shaped volcanic remnant in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, directly east of mainland Port Macquarie, and about from Norfolk Island. The island is about 11 km long and between 2.8 km and 0.6 km wide with an area of...

 as Rhipidura fuliginosa cervina. Also known as the Pied Fantail (pied morph only) or by its Maori

Maori language

Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...

 name, Pīwakawaka or Tīwakawaka). The species is considered by many to be conspecific (the same) as the Grey Fantail

Grey Fantail

The Grey Fantail is a small insectivorous bird. A common fantail found in Australia , New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and New Caledonia...

 of Australia and New Caledonia., however due to differences in its calls some authorities now treat it as a separate species.

Description

This Fantail is mid to dark grey or grey-brown above, yellowish/orange below, with a white throat, white markings over the eye, and (depending on the race) either white-edged or entirely white outer tail feathers. It grows to 16 centimetres in length, of which half is the tail, which, as the name implies, is often displayed fanned out. This reveals that the outer tail feathers that are light and the centre ones are dark. Some subspecies are found in a darker plumage

Plumage

Plumage refers both to the layer of feathers that cover a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage vary between species and subspecies and can also vary between different age classes, sexes, and season. Within species there can also be a...

, notably the "Black fantail" morph seen in up to 25% of South Island birds and less than 1% of North Island birds (it is completely absent from the Chatham Islands).

Behaviour

During waking hours the bird is almost never still. It flits from perch to perch, sometimes on the ground but mostly on the twigs of a tree or any other convenient object, looking out for flying insects. The birds are not shy, and will often flit within a few metres of people, especially in forested areas and suburban gardens. In doing so, it is able to catch any small flying insects that may have been disturbed by human activities such as walking or digging.

The bird's call is an almost metallic "cheek", either as a single sound or (more often) repeated as a chattering.

Breeding

The New Zealand Fantail is a seasonal breeder, nesting from August to March in the North Island, September to January in the South Island and October to January on the Chatham Islands. They usually raise two or more broods per season.
The birds form compact, cup-shaped nests, usually in the forks of trees, made from moss, bark and fibre, and often completed with spider's web. Both sexes build the nest. The clutch

Clutch (eggs)

A clutch of eggs refers to all the eggs produced by birds or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest.In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators, , results in double-clutching...

 size is usually three to four cream eggs which are spotted grey and brown. The incubation period is around two weeks, and incubation

Avian incubation

Incubation refers to the process by which certain oviparous animals hatch their eggs, and to the development of the embryo within the egg. The most vital factor of incubation is the constant temperature required for its development over a specific period. Especially in domestic fowl, the act of...

 and feeding duties are shared by both adults. Nest building and incubation of the second brood may occur while the fledged young of the first brood are still being fed. Young males may begin breeding two months after fledging. The nests of the New Zealand Fantail are parasitised

Brood parasite

Brood parasites are organisms that use the strategy of brood parasitism, a kind of kleptoparasitism found among birds, fish or insects, involving the manipulation and use of host individuals either of the same or different species to raise the young of the brood-parasite...

 by the two species of cuckoo

Cuckoo

The cuckoos are a family, Cuculidae, of near passerine birds. The order Cuculiformes, in addition to the cuckoos, also includes the turacos . Some zoologists and taxonomists have also included the unique Hoatzin in the Cuculiformes, but its taxonomy remains in dispute...

 in New Zealand.

In Mythology

In Maori mythology

Maori mythology

Māori mythology and Māori traditions are the two major categories into which the legends of the Māori of New Zealand may usefully be divided...

 the piwakawaka is a messenger, bringing death

Death

Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....

 or news of death from the gods

Family tree of the Maori gods

This is a Family tree of the Māori gods showing the most important gods in Māori mythology.This family tree gives just an example, there are remarkable regional variations.Females are displayed in italics....

 to the people. The bulbous eyes and erratic flying behaviour of the bird is attributed to it being squeezed by Maui

Maui

The island of Maui is the second-largest of the Hawaiian Islands at and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is part of the state of Hawaii and is the largest of Maui County's four islands, bigger than Lānai, Kahoolawe, and Molokai. In 2010, Maui had a population of 144,444,...

 for not revealing the whereabouts of Mahuika

Mahuika

Mahuika is a Māori fire deity. Generally, Mahuika is female. In some versions, she is the younger sister of Hine-nui-te-pō, goddess of death. It was from her that Māui obtained the secret of making fire. She married Auahi-Turoa and together they had five children, named for the five fingers on the...

, the fire god.
Tiwakawaka is also the name of one of the first Maori settlers to New Zealand.

Gallery

External links

• Grey Fantail videos, photos & sounds on the Internet Bird Collection