Tui

The Tui is a common and vocal honeyeater found throughout New Zealand, easily recognized by its glossy, multicolored iridescent plumage and the pair of small, curled white feather tufts at its throat. It is a familiar sight and sound in native forest as well as suburban gardens where nectar-bearing plants grow.

At a distance the Tui appears entirely black, but its contour feathers show strong iridescence across green, blue, and bronze tones under good light, particularly on the head, back, and upper breast. A thin band of fine, filamentous white feathers crosses the nape, and two small tufts of curled white feathers project from the throat, a feature unique among New Zealand birds and immediately diagnostic even from a single throat feather. Flight feathers are broad and dark with little iridescence. Compared to the Bellbird, another New Zealand honeyeater, the Tui is larger, darker overall, and shows the distinctive white throat tufts that the Bellbird lacks.

Sexes are similar in plumage pattern, though males average larger with a slightly longer bill. Juveniles are duller and show less iridescence, with smaller or less developed throat tufts. Molt renews the iridescent feathering, with brightness varying somewhat by feather freshness and viewing light.

Tui occupy native forest, scrub, and increasingly well-vegetated urban and suburban areas across New Zealand, wherever flowering and fruiting plants provide food. The species is largely non-migratory, though some populations make seasonal movements tracking nectar availability.

This species feeds primarily on nectar, along with fruit and invertebrates, and plays an important role in pollination of native flowering plants. It builds open cup nests in trees or dense shrubs. Its voice is loud and highly varied, combining musical notes with harsh, mechanical-sounding clicks and coughs, often given from a prominent perch. Tui are frequently seen chasing other birds from favored nectar sources, reflecting territorial feeding behavior.