It’s like Wordle, but with birds. Even better, Birdle NZ is about Aotearoa’s birds, who are exceptionally cool thanks to plate tectonics and the Darwinian quirk of having evolved in isolation. In fact, if you were going to invent birds for a video game, our manu would be just the sort of thing you might come up with. (So, I have this idea for a fat green parrot that smells like papaya and has an owl face. Its powers include digging holes and using special air sacs in its chest to make a thunderous tuba sound. I call the creature: kākāpō!)
Released earlier this year for the Bird of the Year 20th anniversary celebrations, Birdle NZ is a guessing game where you get five tries to name the daily bird. Instead of letters, players guess food type, bird size, foot function, habitat and the bird’s name. Plus, there’s the opportunity to listen to the bird’s call, which is super helpful in the case of, say, a ruru or a korimako, and also very soothing. A fuzzy photo of the bird gets clearer with each line completed (also helpful), and when you win you are rewarded with a “ka pai” and a gold star. Talk about a dopamine hit.
Plus, as Forest & Bird chief executive Nicola Toki points out, “with four in five native land birds in Aotearoa at risk of, or threatened with, extinction, Birdle NZ is more than just a game – it’s a daily reminder of the beauty and fragility of the country’s feathered taonga.” Play Birdle NZ for free at birdle.nz. – LW
