The flightless takahē (Porphyrio [Notornis] hochstetteri) is a colourful green and blue bird with an impressive red beak and stout legs.
This unique bird, the largest living member of the rail family, was once thought to be extinct. There were only four recorded sightings of takahē last century and then none were seen until 1948. In that year a few pairs were rediscovered in the alpine tussock grasslands of the Murchison Mountains, Fiordland.