Pūteketeke: New Zealand’s ‘Bird of the Century’ thanks to John Oliver’s campaign

The pūteketeke, also known as the Australasian crested grebe, has been named New Zealand’s bird of the century with the help of late-night talk show host John Oliver. New Zealand’s newly elected prime minister Christopher Luxon congratulated Oliver and all those who supported the pūteketeke in the bird of the year contest, which drew over 350,000 votes from nearly 200 countries. Oliver launched a campaign to raise awareness about the vulnerability of the native crested grebes, which led to the bird securing over 290,000 votes in the final count. The voting verification system crashed temporarily due to the unprecedented number of votes. Oliver’s campaign included billboards in multiple countries and appearances on talk shows to promote the bird as the “Lord of the Wings.”