I live just north of Dunedin, and we have a good amount of pīwakawaka about. We have seen at least one fully melanistic one.
We have recently seen two of these more red pīwakawaka, presumably from the same clutch. I assume one parent is melanistic, but this colour pattern is surprising. Being darker predominantly at the front makes sense, but the white on the face and wing being replaced by red is unexpected!
It's a terrible picture, sorry: it's a still from a video.
Has anyone ever seen one like this before?
