Mohua / Yellowhead

Mohoua ochrocephala

At Risk - Declining

Bright, musical, and once common throughout the South Island, the mohua, yellowhead or bush canary, is a striking forest songbird now mostly confined to predator-controlled areas. Easily recognised by its vivid golden head and cheerful calls, mohua are a taonga species, deeply valued by many iwi, and a key indicator of healthy native forest.

Quick Facts:

• Mohua live in tight-knit flocks and communicate with a variety of high-pitched chirps and trills.
• They nest in tree cavities, making them especially vulnerable to predators like rats and stoats.
• Mohua pairs are often devoted for life, with male and female parents staying together year after year.
• Parents get extra help in raising their chicks from other mohua. These nest-helpers are often the chicks from the previous year.
• Once abundant, their range has shrunk dramatically – but conservation is helping populations recover in protected areas.
• Featured on New Zealand’s $100 note, a symbol of their cultural and ecological importance.

Protecting mohua means controlling predators and preserving mature native forests – helping bring the golden song of Aotearoa back to the bush.

---

Back to: Biodiversity | Birds