The facts

❚ Considered New Zealand’s smallest bird, it weighs about six grams.

❚ Lighter than a $1 coin.

❚ The bird belongs to an ancient endemic family of Gondwanan origin, Acanthisittidae (New Zealand wrens).

❚ This family has just two surviving species, the rifleman and rock wren.

❚ Five other species in the family have become extinct because of introduced predators.

❚ The birds appear in many stories as a messenger of Ta¯ne, god of the forest.