The last Huia

William Smith stood in the untamed bush of the Tararua ranges and looked up. He could hear birds. It was three huia - the last confirmed sighting of the now extinct bird.
Huia - a gorgeous native with beautiful beaks - were already extremely rare.
Considered sacred to Maori, their white tipped feathers were only worn by those of the highest status.
By the time Europeans arrived in New Zealand, the bird was already in decline.
Their habitat was destroyed, introduced species were taking their tolls and they were also hunted.
Introduced rats plundered them, reducing their range to the southern end of the North Island.
Massive deforestation was taking place as land was cleared and huia could only like where there was old forest resulting in rotted trees which they used to hunt wood grubs.
Huia were particularly vulnerable because it spent so much time on the ground.
It’s beauty meant it was also sought after by collectors - and not alive.
There are a great many in natural history museums overseas.
In 1892, the Wild Birds Protection Act was put into place to protect native species but little enforcement took place.
It was December 1907 when Smith saw the huia. A few unconfirmed sightings have been made since then.
William Walter Smith was born on September 14, 1852, in Scotland, the son of Ellen and Thomas Smith.
He started work at 13 as an apprentice to a gardener and worked his way up through a succession of English country homes.
In 1975 he came to New Zealand and was employed at Mt Peel station in Canterbury, marrying Mary Foreman in 1880.
Smith was often employed as a gardener but it was not the most stable of livings.
It was his rambling about that saw him pick up a habit of picking up and collecting native plants, birds, ants and earthworms along with moa bones.
While working at the Albury estate near Timaru he discovered the last few specimens of the rare laughing owl or whēkau named for its mischievous sounding call.
He began sending notes on natural history to journals.
Smith became resident custodian of the Ashburton Domain, laying out the gardens and became prominent in horticultural societies.
It was during this time he challenged the generally held belief that colonialism would drive native species extinct. He thought the native birds and bush were worth preserving.
It was this that led him to being appointed to a commission for preservation, travelling to scenic and historic sites and making recommendations for their preservation
However their expenses led to unfavourable comments and the commission was replaced wholesale by people who would do what they were told.
By now he was living separately from his wife and became curator of reserves for the Palmerston North Borough Council but resigned after an argument with the mayor going on to be curator of Pukekura Park in New Plymouth. It was here he even successfully bred kiwi.
He resigned in 1920 but was unable to get another position and applied for the old age pension. It just covered his board at a lodging house.
Smith died on March 3, 1942 and is buried at Te Henui Cemetery.
Picture from Te Papa’s collection.​