US television host John Oliver has credited his 2024 Emmys win to last year's Bird of the Century winner, the "majestic" pūteketeke.
In a video exchange posted to Instagram, Bird of the Year 2024 campaigner and television host Phil Keoghan thanked Oliver "for bringing the birds of New Zealand into the limelight, even to places like to Emmys."
"Here at the Emmys 2024 with John Oliver, I've just been contacted by the Prime Minister of New Zealand to make an official thank you ... I'd like to thank you on behalf of all New Zealanders, for the birds that never got recognition," Keoghan - a Dunedin resident who got on board as an advocate for Tūhura Otago Museum's hoiho campaign.
All the attention is on the hoiho this year - Dunedin's yellow-eyed penguin and 2024 winner of Bird of the Year - but Oliver made sure his allegience to the pūteketeke (great crested grebe) was clear.
"Let's recognise all New Zealand birds, but let's be clear, there is one bird that is better than all the others, it's the pūteketeke ... Hoiho, Hoiho, off to work you go. Pūteketeke for life."
Last Week with John Oliver won the Outstanding Scripted Variety Show award for the second consecutive year - and the comedian couldn't help crediting the New Zealand native bird for his win.
"This is for the pūteketeke," he said, gesturing to the award.
John Oliver's campaign for the pūteketeke raised global awareness of Aotearoa birds. Photo: Screengrab
Oliver has been a staunch supporter of Forest and Bird's annual 'Bird of the Year' competition, which raises awareness of conservation threats to many endangered native birds.
In 2023, the television host campaigned for the pūteketeke's bid for Bird of the Century and ignited a huge conversation about New Zealand's native birds.
If talking about it on his own show wasn't enough, Oliver even appeared on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in full-on grebe garb, and eventually became embroiled in an ornithological stoush with former TAHI and RNZ presenter Evie Orpe.
His efforts paid off; the mighty pūteketeke was not only crowd 2023 Bird of the Year, but Bird of the Century.
Forest and Bird chief executive Nicola Toki said the pūteketeke had began as an outside contender, but quickly catapulted to the top spot thanks to its "unique looks, adorable parenting style, and propensity for puking".
She wasn't surprised these "charming characteristics caught the eye of an influential bird enthusiast with a massive following."
Oliver's campaign for the pūteketeke had a record 350,000 voters flocking to defend their competition. Forest and Bird were so overwhelmed with the response it wasn't able to count them all in time and a winner's announcement had to be delayed.
Forty-five of that year's verified votes were under the name John Oliver.
