Tuatara

A living ark

Tomtit

Tomtit. Photo by Peter Reese.

Common name: tomtit
Maori name: miromiro
Scientific name: Petroica macrocephala toitoi
Status: endemic, protected

Very small, about half a robin's size. Black with white breast and patches on wings, sometimes a white forehead.

Often sits on perches 'watching and waiting' for food on branches and tree trunks.

Unseen in Wellington for many years until first released into Karori Sanctuary in 2001.

The current small population means that tomtits are unlikely to be seen in the Sanctuary.