The extinct New Zealand bird whose white-tipped tail feathers were prized in Māori headdresses was the huia.
The huia (Heteralocha acutirostris) was endemic to New Zealand’s North Island. Its glossy black tail feathers ended in a distinctive broad white band, making them instantly recognizable and highly valuable. Māori communities exchanged the feathers as prestigious goods and used them in hair ornaments, ceremonial headwear, funerals, and other expressions of rank and respect.
Huia feathers were often stored in carved treasure containers called waka huia. The bird itself was not generally hunted as ordinary food; its feathers and other body parts carried far greater cultural value. A traditional ornament called a marereko could incorporate twelve huia feathers.
The species suffered from habitat loss, introduced predators, hunting, and intense collecting. The last confirmed sighting was in 1907, although a later credible report dated to 1924 is sometimes mentioned. The kakapo and moa were also distinctive extinct or threatened New Zealand birds, but neither is the canonical answer to this feather clue.