Listen to the Bellbird
Recording by Ken George · xeno-canto XC842925
Bellbird
Māori name: Korimako
Scientific name: Anthornis melanura
Not Threatened
The bellbird's song is widely considered one of the most beautiful sounds in the natural world. Early European explorers described waking to a chorus so loud it was almost deafening. The korimako has a rich, melodious call made up of pure bell-like tones, and is an important pollinator of native flowering plants. Numbers in the Coromandel are recovering thanks to predator control efforts.
Did you know?
Joseph Banks, the botanist on Captain Cook's first voyage, wrote that the bellbird's dawn chorus was 'the most melodious wild musick I have ever heard, almost imitating small bells.'
Threats
Stoats are the bellbird's most significant predator, wiping out entire breeding populations in bad mast years. Rats take eggs and destroy nests.