Voters will be able to pick a flock of their favourite New Zealand native birds in Forest & Bird's 2019 Bird of the Year contest. BRADEN FASTIER/STUFF Could the little penguin or kororā take out the Bird of the Year title in 2019 and become the first native seabird to win the crown in the popular annual Forest & Bird contest? The new proportional representation voting system, known as "instant run-off voting", replaces the first past the post system previously used for the lighthearted and increasingly popular annual contest. Hubscher said the new voting system might change the tactics of campaign managers to "vote #1 for my bird". The competition also has a serious side, aiming to raise awareness about the threats to native birds, most of which are threatened or at risk of extinction.

Source: Stuff September 28, 2019 03:45 UTC