Building a community of life on earth丨 Long-tailed bat "breaking the rules" was elected as New Zealand's "Bird of the Year"

Wellington, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- The results of the 2021 New Zealand "Bird of the Year" competition were announced on November 1, and the native land mammal long-tailed bat "broke the rules" and came out on top.

The picture shows the New Zealand long-tailed bat in nature. (Xinhua News Agency)

The Bird of the Year competition is an annual selection organised by New Zealand's independent conservation organisation, Forest and Birds, to raise awareness of New Zealand birds. This year's "Bird of the Year" selection campaign began on October 18 and lasted for two weeks, attracting many New Zealand bird lovers, receiving a total of 56,733 valid votes nationwide, and the long-tailed bat "broke the rules" to join the selection and won the crown with the highest vote.

Forest & Birds said in a statement on the same day that the word "bird" in Māori also covers other flying creatures, so new Zealand native winged creatures are eligible to compete for the title of "Bird of the Year".

New Zealand bats are the only native land mammals endemic to New Zealand, divided into long-tailed bats, short-tailed bats and large short-tailed bats, of which large short-tailed bats are considered extinct. In recent years, the New Zealand Department of Conservation has stepped up the protection of New Zealand bats, even wearing miniature radio trackers for close monitoring and management.