a lost cause in hawkes bay farmland
- Size
- Length: 45-50 cm, Weight: 300-500 g
- Lifespan
- 5-8 years
- Diet
- Omnivorous - feeds on insects grain worms carrion small mammals and birds' eggs. Probes soil with bill. Follows farm machinery to catch disturbed prey.
- Habitat
- Farmland pastures open woodlands and urban edges. Prefers areas with scattered tall trees for roosting and open ground for feeding in agricultural zones.
- Range
- Native to Europe and Asia. Introduced to New Zealand. Now found in small localised populations in Hawke's Bay and the Marlborough region before extinction.
- Endemism
- Introduced
- Main Threats
- Habitat loss from land use change. Control programmes targeting agricultural pest species. Declining population reduces genetic diversity leading to extinction.
- Population
- Localised populations in Hawke's Bay and Marlborough. Declining. Classified as At Risk Declining by DOC due to habitat loss and control programmes.
- Conservation Status
- Extinct
- Human Risk
- harmless
- Handling Note
- eradicated species, report any sightings to biosecurity
- Conservation Note
- Introduced bird; bred in New Zealand from 1862 but now extinct as a breeding species.
- Assessment
- NZTCS Birds (2021)
- Te Ao Māori
- The rook has no recognised Māori name as it is an introduced species from Europe. It arrived in New Zealand with European settlers as part of the Acclimatisation Society attempts to bring familiar species to the colony. In Māori tradition the native kōkako and kākā occupy the intellectual and social niches of large forest birds. The rook filled neither role. It remained an outsider. A pest. A curiosity. Its absence now is noted but not mourned. The landscape has moved on. The niche is empty. Or filled by others. The rook's legacy is cautionary. Introduction is risky. Eradication is hard. Success is rare.
A crow with a pale grey face and a reputation for intelligence. The rook is a member of the crow family known for problem solving tool use and social complexity. It is also a farmer's pest. It eats crops. It damages young shoots. Farmers shoot it. The rook persists anyway.
The plumage is black with a purple-blue sheen. The face is bare grey skin. The bill is long and pointed. The legs are black. The bird is handsome in a severe way. It looks serious. It is serious.
It feeds on insects grain worms and carrion. It probes the soil with its bill. It follows the plough. A rook in a freshly ploughed field is a common sight. It eats the grubs turned up by the blades.
The call is a harsh cawing 'kaa-kaa-kaa' often given in flight. Rooks are social. They call constantly. The sound of a rookery carries for kilometres.
Rooks are not native. They were introduced from Europe in the 1860s. They established in Hawke's Bay and Marlborough. They did not spread widely. New Zealand did not suit them as well as Australia.
Breeding takes it to rookeries. The nest is a platform of sticks built high in a tree. The colony is noisy. The birds are aggressive. Four to six eggs. Both parents share incubation.
The rook is declining in New Zealand. Control programmes target it as a pest. Habitat loss reduces its range. The population is small. It may not survive.
The rook is known for its intelligence. It has been observed using tools. It recognises human faces. It solves puzzles. It is a smart bird. That does not save it.
The call is the giveaway. A rook cawing from a treetop is announcing its presence.
The rook is not well loved in New Zealand. It is a pest. It is foreign. It is also fascinating.
Its extinction was not sudden. It was a slow fade. The control worked. The habitat shrank. The numbers dropped. The silence grew. Now only records remain. The bird is gone. The memory persists. The lesson is clear. Intelligence does not guarantee survival. Adaptation has limits. The rook reached its limit. It carried on until it could not. And then it stopped.