Art Magnet - Morepork - Ruru

Art Magnet - Morepork - Ruru.

Rubber.

The morepork is a small, dark, forest-dwelling owl. Found in both native and plantation forests, its distinctive “more-pork” call is commonly heard at night in many urban parks and well-vegetated suburbs. Moreporks are relatively common throughout much of New Zealand but are sparse through the eastern and central South Island. Their diet consists of insects, small mammals and birds, which it hunts at night.

Identification

The morepork is a small, compact, dark-brown owl. Its striking yellow to yellowish-green eyes are set into two facial disks either side of a small sharply hooked bill. The back feathers are dark-brown spotted sparsely with off-white. The breast is dark-brown variably streaked with cream and brown through to rufous. The legs are feathered legs down to the yellow feet.

Voice: Calls are given almost exclusively at night. The onomatopoeic ‘more-pork’ call is the most characteristic and often heard call. They also utter a repetitive ‘quork-quork’, a rising ‘quee’ call often confused with kiwi, and a yelping call similar to the short call of little owl.

Similar species: little owls are the only other small species of owl in New Zealand. They are paler than morepork, more grey-brown than dark-brown, and heavily spotted and streaked with cream. They are found only in open habitats in South Island, with minimal range overlap with morepork. The rising ‘quee’ call is often mistaken for a kiwi call.

Size 9cm H x 6.5 cm W.