Endangered New Zealand bird caught fighting ‘at risk’ reptile in rare footage

the large flightless takahē bird in hot pursuit of the tuatara – but the tables soon turn

Two of New Zealand’s most rare and beloved animals – a large flightless takahē bird and an ancient tuatara reptile – have been captured chasing and nipping at one another during a bush-floor melee.

Nick Fisentzidis, a department of conservation ranger on the pest-free Tiritiri Matangi Island near Auckland, saw the takahē attack the tuatara and quickly grabbed his phone to capture the rare footage.

“I saw them having a bit of a nip at each other,” Fisentzidis said. “The takahē definitely had a go at the tail of the tuatara, and they had a bit of a scrap.”

The video shows the takahē in hot pursuit of the tuatara, but the tables turn when the reptile squares up to the bird.

“I followed them down the hill, and the tuatara got a couple of bites in, so the takahē backed off and snuck back away up the forest,” Fisentzidis said.

The rotund blue takahē was declared extinct in 1898, their already-reduced population devastated by the arrival of European settlers’ animal companions: stoats, cats, ferrets and rats. After their rediscovery in 1948, their numbers are now at about 500, growing at about 8% a year.

The tuatara are commonly referred to as a “living fossil” and are the sole survivor of the ancient reptile order Sphenodontia, which walked the Earth with dinosaurs 225m years ago.

They can reproduce past the age of 100 and live up to 200 years, making them one of the longest-living creatures. They are considered “at risk” and survive primarily on a small number of offshore, predator-free islands.

Takahē and tuatara only coexist in two locations: Tiritiri Matangi and Zealandia, an urban eco-sanctuary in Wellington.

Fisentzidis said the footage was a “neat snapshot” of how these species may have interacted in the past.

“It also shows what’s possible … if we really start to rally together to bring more of our native wildlife back.”

Cover photo:  Rare footage shows tuatara and takahē having 'a bit of a scrap' in New Zealand