Parrots are an amazing group of birds. Whilst most think of them as brightly coloured tropical birds that repeat phrases, they are actually some of the most intelligent animals on the planet, ranking high among birds, along with corvids. And yes, while parrots like the macaws are brightly coloured, many are primarily green, matching their environment. New Zealand has many of these, including the subject of this review, the Kea (Nestor notabilis), an omnivorous and inquisitive bird known to be a bit of a pest, investigating things like cars to the point of damaging them, annoying locals and entertaining tourists to the island. It’s this reason that a group of them are known as a circus and it has the nickname “the clown of the mountains”. There are only a couple of models of this species, so lets look at one, produced by Yowie.
I want to start by bringing up the flaws of this model, mainly the beak. The Kea does have a hooked beak, a common feature among parrots, but here it appears almost comically long. This isn’t totally inaccurate, but the fact they had to round and blunt the beak makes it look like something is dangling from it’s face. I know it’s a necessary, but it bugs me a bit. Not overly keen on the head overall. Rest of the body is spot on however, so lets look closer at what I like about it.
This figure has a perched position, but the articulation really helps it, with it’s head and legs able to move, giving the model a great deal of character, perfect for this animal. It is a decent size, measuring 1.6″ high (when fully upright) and 1.8″ long, though perhaps a tad big for major lines (Keas tend to reach about 19″ in length).
While I do feel this is the lesser of the two available Kea models, I do think this is a neat little figure, certainly capturing the character of the species, and would still recommend it. It is discontinued now, so hunting eBay is your best bet if you want this figure, and I do say it is worth considering at least. See what you think!
