Northland fans wide-eyed over white fantail sighting in Whangarei

This rare white fantail was filmed in bush near Whangarei.

A rare white piwakawaka, or fantail, has been captured in Whangarei - on camera, at least.

June Lewis took the photo recently near the entrance to the Waverley St track in Onerahi, about 50 metres from the road.

The photo has been posted on Forest and Bird's Facebook page.

Sightings of white birds are rare but not unheard of, Forest and Bird communications adviser Megan Hubscher said.

The birds are seldom seen, possibly because they don't live long. Without the usual black to light brown, pied camouflage colours, their light plumage makes them vulnerable to predators.

That strengthens Forest and Bird's message about protecting native birds: cats should be kept inside at night and traps put out for rats, stoats and other predators where possible.

In 2015, the Advocate ran a photo of a white ruru, or morepork, spotted in the Western Hills/Pukenui on Whangarei's western fringe.

That brought forth reports from all over Northland of other unusually pale or white native birds.

Ms Hubscher said she had seen photos of white tui, kukupa and ruru but this was the first time someone had sent Forest and Bird a photo of a white piwakawaka.

Such birds were usually not albino, but had a genetic condition known as leucism which prevented only their feathers from taking up the natural pigment, melanin.

The piwakawaka is a small bird with a large fan-shaped tail, popular with people for its chattering ''cheet cheet'' and its tendency to flit, seemingly fearlessly, around people.

The fantail is really only following a person who is outdoors, or other birds and animals, to capture insects disturbed by their movements.

They feed mainly in the air, seldom on the ground.

Their lifespan is relatively short, with the oldest bird recorded in New Zealand only three years old.

The species' success is largely due to its prolific and precocious breeding.

Juvenile males can start breeding between two and nine months old, and females can lay as many as five clutches of two to five eggs in one season.