Blue and green macaws, by Ava Dilly
A young artist’s painting of endangered macaws has won a Department of Conservation youth art competition celebrating
World Wildlife Day.
Based on the theme “sustaining all life on earth,” the competition invited children ages 5-12 to show their favourite
wild animal in its natural habitat. For Ava Dilly, a 12-year-old Aucklander and the winner of the competition, this was
the South American blue-and-gold macaw.
“What the macaws love about their home (the Amazon rainforest) is that it has over 1,300 species of birds, it has over
40,000 species of plants and it produces over 20% of the Earth’s oxygen. They love the complex ecosystems, the
interesting creatures and they love flying through the forest and spreading their wings,” Ava says.
Ten other finalists have received Highly Commended, with artwork depicting animals including a jewelled gecko, a kākāpō
and a Nepalese red panda.
Run by the CITES (Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species) team at DOC, the competition celebrates
international World Wildlife Day. World Wildlife Day on the 3 March every year aims to raise awareness of the world’s
fauna and flora, and marks the date that the international Convention was established in 1973 to help ensure the
survival of endangered species in the wild.
“We’ve been blown away by the amazing response from kids across the country, from Kaitaia in the North to Alexandra in
the South. We had over 400 entries depicting animals from all over the world, showcasing our planet’s biodiversity, and
it was difficult to pick just one winner,” says DOC CITES officer Avi Narula.
“This competition was a way to get kids engaged in the message that conservation is international. It’s great to see so
many of our young future leaders are already engaged and already care so much about the incredible diversity of species
on our planet.
“The macaw also happens to be a species listed under CITES Appendix II, so Ava chose a very appropriate animal for this
competition.”
DOC Director General Lou Sanson says, “What I love about Ava’s drawing is it reminds me of my own experience in the
Amazon where I saw blue and gold macaws almost 30 years ago. These birds are a symbol to the world about the loss of
rainforests in the Amazon basin.”
Ava has received a Biodiversity Prize pack with $200. It includes a 200-piece jungle scene jigsaw puzzle, Gavin Bishop’s Wildlife of Aotearoa book, Lonely Planet’s Wildlife Atlas, a DOC 2020 calendar and a set of 24 Crayola colouring pencils.
Further information on the implementation of CITES in New Zealand can be found on the DOC website.