Taxidermy: A Cased Re-creation of a Family of Extinct New Zealand Huia Birds (†Heteralocha acutirostris), circa 2022, by Barry Williams, Taxidermy, Cannock Staffordshire, a superb pair of composed full mount Huia birds, the male with huhu grub within it's beak feeding his young chick laid within a natural nest site, the female perched upon a branch with head turning to the right observing, mounted amidst a natural setting of grasses, reeds and fauna, above painted soil groundwork beneath, set against a pale blue painted back drop, enclosed within an ebonised period style three-glass display case, 89cm by 30.5cm by 67cm, the beak of the female has been reproduced from an actual beak specimen shot in the Gollans Valley, York Bay, New Zealand circa 1890, mounted upon substitute donor bodies, together with a pair of authentic natural Huia bird feathers, previously owned by his grace the 11th Duke of Bedford, president of the London Zoological Society (1899-1936), and later owned by his grace the 12th Duke of Bedford. Additional image shows the natural birds which donated the two feathers included within this lot.

The Huia birds extinction had two primary causes. The first was rampant overhunting to procure huia skins for mounted specimens and their tail feathers for hat decorations. The second major cause was the widespread deforestation of the lowlands of the North Island by European settlers to create pasture for agriculture. Most of these forests were ancient, ecologically complex primary forests, and huia were unable to survive in regenerating secondary forests. It was already a rare bird before the arrival of Europeans, confined to the Ruahine, Tararua, Rimutaka and Kaimanawa mountain ranges in the south-east of the North Island. It was remarkable for having the most pronounced sexual dimorphism in bill shape of any bird species in the world. The female's beak was long, thin and arched downward, while the male's was short and stout, like that of a crow. Males were 45 cm (18 in) long, while females were larger at 48 cm (19 in). The sexes were otherwise similar, with orange wattles and deep metallic, bluish-black plumage with a greenish iridescence on the upper surface, especially about the head. The tail feathers were unique among New Zealand birds in having a broad white band across the tips.