Moult is a vital avian process because it allows the renewal of the worn plumage in an organised way. Moult has a circannual periodicity and tends to differ between the first annual cycle (post-juvenile moult) and subsequent ones (post-breeding moult) of passerines, a fact that can be used to determine the age of individuals. We estimated wing-feather and rectrix moult-extent for 17 New Zealand passerines (excluding introduced species), classified each bird according to eight moult patterns, and computed frequency of wing-feather and rectrix replacement. We combined post-juvenile moult information with that of maturation of feathered and unfeathered characters to provide guidelines for age determination. Our results cover an important gap in the knowledge of the natural history of New Zealand passerines, generate reliable age determination criteria, and thus providing essential information for future conservation actions (including translocations) and to test hypotheses on the ecology and evolution of avian moult in the Australasian region.

We report Records Appraisal Committee (RAC) decisions regarding Unusual Bird Reports received between 1 January 2023 and 31 December 2024. Among the 195 submissions accepted by the RAC were the first New Zealand records of Horsfield’s bronze-cuckoo (Chrysococcyx basalis), MacGillivray’s prion (Pachyptila macgillivrayi), and the Asian subspecies of gull-billed tern (Gelochelidon nilotica affinis). We also report the second accepted records of stilt sandpiper (Calidris himantopus), Bulwer’s petrel (Bulweria bulwerii), and dusky woodswallow (Artamus personatus), the third accepted sighting of northern pintail (Anas acuta), and the second and third accepted records of streaked shearwater (Calonectris leucomelas). Other notable records included the first records of Kermadec petrel (Pterodroma neglecta) and brown booby (Sula leucogaster) at Rēkohu/Wharekauri/Chatham Islands, plumed whistling duck (Dendrocygna eytoni) at the Snares Islands/Tini Heke, Canada goose (Branta canadensis) and black shag (Phalacrocorax car

Pacific imperial pigeons (Ducula pacifica) are important seed dispersers with complex vocal and behavioural repertoires. This study documents their vocalisations, territoriality, mating, nesting, and feeding behaviours in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. Five vocalisation types were identified and described here as the common coo, territorial coo, courtship coo, quiet coo, and growl. The common coo and growl were most frequent, often exchanged in call-and-response between distant birds. The territorial coo and courtship coo were linked to close interactions. Territoriality involved displays, chasing, and occasional combat. Year-round aerial display flights suggest a potential role in territoriality rather than being exclusively tied to breeding season. Mating included novel post-mating courtship feeding. Feeding observations and faecal analyses confirmed an exclusive reliance on non-native plants, indicating a potential role in spreading invasive species. This study enhances knowledge of Pacific imperial pigeon vocal

The spotted shag (Phalacrocorax punctatus) forages in coastal marine waters up to about 16 kms offshore, and typically nests in rock cavities and on ledges of coastal cliffs. Some shags roosting on the Tata Islands and perhaps at sites nearby in Golden Bay, northern South Island, come near or onshore at Tata Beach at dawn. Counts of these shags were carried out to determine monthly and annual fluctuations in numbers during the 10-year period 2009–2018. Numbers peaked in winter (May–August), the likely non-breeding season of the spotted shag in the northern South Island. Mean numbers per count per year peaked in 2009 (1037 shags), declined up to 2014 (309), and then remained fairly stable through to 2017. It is unknown whether this decline in abundance is the result of fewer spotted shags overwintering in Golden Bay after breeding elsewhere in the northern South Island, or whether the regional population has declined. Future monitoring of the spotted shag, particularly of its abundance and breeding success at

Banded rails (Hypotaenidia philippensis) were monitored using footprints before, during, and after the partial removal of 1.8 ha of mangroves (Avicennia marina) from a 2.4 ha area in the Ruakaka estuary. Mangrove removal occurred in two phases: adult trees in winter 2014 and juvenile plants and pneumatophores in winter 2015. Banded rails were only detected on the margins of mangroves during adult tree removal, and then throughout the cleared areas after seedling and pneumatophore removal. In 2016, 2018, and 2020, rails showed a similar use pattern in the uncleared and cleared areas to that used before mangrove removal. After mangrove seedling and pneumatophore removal, potential predators, including cats (Felis catus), were present most of the time, and mustelids (Mustela spp.) were present in summer.

Shorebird nest outcomes can be affected by factors such as predation, human disturbance, and habitat characteristics. Over two breeding seasons between 2022–2024, we monitored the hatching success of banded dotterels (Anarhynchus bicinctus), southern black-backed gulls (SBBGs) (Larus dominicanus), black-fronted terns (Chlidonias albostriatus), pied stilts (Himantopus leucocephalus), and variable oystercatchers (Haematopus unicolor) at the Ashley River estuary, New Zealand, and compared these values to those in the literature. We also recorded habitat variables at the nest sites of the two species with the largest sample sizes: banded dotterels and SBBGs. Hatching success was lowest for black-fronted terns and highest for SBBGs. Overall, failure was predominantly due to predation and flooding. SBBG hatching success was unrelated to the measured nest site variables but may have been influenced by seasonal changes, with earlier nests appearing more successful. Banded dotterel nests that were closer to water appeared to be more successful, as did nests in the first year of the study. Cats (Felis domesticus) were recorded depredating banded dotterel nests, highlighting the importance of monitoring and controlling invasive species to protect native birds in New Zealand’s estuaries.