Matuku-hūrepoAustralasian Bittern

Matuku-hūrepo | Australasian bittern (Botaurus poiciloptilus) 

Photo by Imogen Warren, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Call

Matuku-hūrepo call (Source: Department of Conservation CC BY 4.0)

Where is home?

Among the tall plants in wetlands, swamps and the at the edge of lakes.

How are they doing?

Threatened – Nationally Critical
Vulnerable to habitat loss, introduced predators, poor water quality, reduced food availability.

What are they known for?

• Matuku-hūrepo are great at hiding, but when they do get spotted they point their beak to the sky and freeze, expertly blending into the reeds. This technique does not, however, work so well when they try it out in the open!

• As well as fish, mollusc, insects, and worms, matuku-hūrepo are great tuna hunters! They hunt by sweeping their bill side to side in the water, drawing in prey.

Matuku-hūrepo connections

• Matuku roughly translates from te reo Maori to ‘heron of the swamp’.

• The male matuku has a loud booming cry to ward off other males in the breeding season. It was thought the matuku boomed from loneliness and sorrow, and that hearing its call could help people express grief. A lament sung by a grieving person describes the singer as a matuku:
  
  Kei te matuku, e hū ana i te repo, i!
  A bittern booming in the marsh!