Rifleman / Ines Moran Photo: Supplied
In the course of recent field work, PhD student Ines Moran and colleague Yen Yi Loo accidentally discovered that the Tītipounamu/Rifleman, New Zealand's tiniest bird, has a previously unknown natural predator.
They captured video of a long-tailed cuckoo/koekoeā attacking nestlings, highlighting a threat to the tiny, native warblers which weigh in at just 5-7g .
Ines's main area of study at the University of Auckland's Cain Lab is the Tītipounamu, which shares a common ancestor with parrots and oscine birds - groups of birds known to learn their vocalisations.
Her research looks at dialects, vocal networks and birdsong.
