Two young Spotless Crake chicks were found amongst the reeds on the edge of the Awarua Lagoon near Bluff; a rare find in the South Island of New Zealand. At this stage in life they appear remarkably similar to pukeko or even takahe chicks, however the red eye-ring and forward posture as they run away at a surprisingly fast pace, indicates their true form.

The Spotless Crake (Porzana tabuensis), or puweto (Maori), is a small, dark and highly secretive rail that is more often heard than seen. Fast runners, spotless crakes are rarely seen in flight – yet are apparently able to disperse long distances to colonise new marsheswhere it feeds on grass bases, a variey of insects and larvae, tadpoles and seeds of aquatic plants. Its bill is proportionally shorter than that of a banded rail or a weka and its uniform slate-blue underside and chestnut-brown topside earned it the name ‘spotless’, in contrast to the spotted crake of Europe and western Asia.