The Chatham Islands fernbird is an extinct bird species that was endemic to the Chatham Islands. It was historically known only from Mangere Island, but fossils have been found on Pitt Island and Chatham Island as well. Its closest living relative is the New Zealand fernbird or matata. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of the New Zealand fernbird, but is now widely recognized as its own species. Both fernbirds were formerly placed in their own genus Bowdleria; they were later moved to Megalurus and most recently Poodytes.
Region
Chatham Islands
Typical Environment
Historically confined to small, dense wetland and scrub habitats on the Chatham Islands, especially Mangere Island. It favored tangles of sedges, rushes, flax, and fern-dominated thickets with damp ground. The species skulked close to the ground and rarely ventured into open areas. Subfossil evidence shows it once occupied suitable low shrublands and wetlands on Chatham and Pitt Islands as well.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 300 m
Climate Zone
Temperate
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
This fernbird was endemic to the Chatham Islands and is now extinct, likely due to habitat loss and predation by introduced mammals. It was historically recorded on Mangere Island, with subfossil remains from Pitt and Chatham Islands. Formerly placed in Bowdleria and later Megalurus, it is now recognized in Poodytes and treated as distinct from the New Zealand fernbird (Poodytes punctatus). Its secretive nature and preference for dense vegetation made it difficult to observe.
Temperament
secretive and skulking
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats, weak flier staying low over vegetation
Social Behavior
Typically found in pairs or small family groups within dense cover. Likely monogamous, building a cup nest low in sedges or shrubs. Spent much time creeping through vegetation and rarely perched conspicuously.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Soft, insect-like trills and ticking calls delivered from within cover. Scolding contact notes were given when disturbed, with occasional brief song phrases at dawn and dusk.
Plumage
Rufous-brown upperparts with dark streaking, paler buff underparts with fine streaks on the breast, and a long, graduated tail often appearing frayed at the tips.
Diet
Primarily small invertebrates such as insects, larvae, spiders, and other arthropods gleaned from foliage and litter. It likely probed among sedges and fern bases and occasionally took small seeds or berries opportunistically. Foraging was mostly close to the ground or within low shrubs.
Preferred Environment
Dense wetland margins, flax and sedge beds, and ferny scrub where it could move under cover. It avoided open ground and relied on thick vegetation for both feeding and protection.
