John Oliver’s campaign for a ‘puking bird’ pays off in New Zealand’s Bird of the Century contest

By NICK PERRY
Associated Press

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Comedian John Oliver has succeeded in his campaign to have what he describes as a weird, puking bird with a colorful mullet win New Zealand’s Bird of the Century contest. Conservation group Forest and Bird announced early Wednesday that Oliver’s favored water bird, the pūteketeke, had won after the host of HBO’s “Last Week Tonight” campaigned heavily and humorously on his show. Forest and Bird holds a contest every year to raise awareness about the plight of New Zealand’s native birds. Oliver discovered a loophole in the rules, which allowed anybody with a valid email address to cast a vote. Vote checkers in New Zealand were so inundated that they had to delay the result.