Vote tarāpunga/red-billed gull for Bird of the Year!

Join us in connecting with nature right here in urban Tāmaki Makaurau by championing the tarāpunga/red-billed gull for Bird of the Year 2025!

We see (and hear!) these charismatic, but much maligned and often misunderstood, coastal manu throughout Aotearoa. They are a quintessential part of our beach experience, and we also see them inland from the coast – like here at Auckland Zoo.

Tarāpunga inhabit coastal regions as far north as The Three Kings Islands to the deep south in the subantarctic. They play a really important role in the ecosystem as scavengers (though our leftovers and junk/picnic food are not what they need!) and their nutrient-rich guano (or poo) provides valuable nutrients for native plants.

Despite their apparent abundance, these rather slow-reproducing manu are struggling like many other fully protected native species, and are assessed as ‘At Risk – Declining’. Some experts predict their population to plummet by a staggering 50–70% over the next three decades.

The major threats to tarāpunga are introduced predators and climate change. Cats, ferrets, stoats and rats steal both eggs and chicks from nests while warming temperatures affect the reproduction, distribution and availability of krill – the main food for these birds during their breeding season. Both negatively impact on tarāpunga breeding success and result in local and regional population declines.

Let’s raise the profile and love for the tarāpunga by voting it Bird of the Year 2025!

Vote for Bird of the Year!

Voting closes at 5pm on Sunday 28 September 2025.