The bird show is back and better than ever this weekend, with flocks of feathered friends making their way to the Kawerau Town Hall for the two-day event.

Medals, seeds, ribbons and rosettes are up for grabs, with event hosts Whakatāne Bird Club, expecting more than 400 entries from across the North Island.

The show is open to the public from 1pm to 4.30pm on Saturday, and from 9.30am to noon on Sunday. Entry is $3 for adults and $1 for children.

Birds and owners will be travelling from Gisborne, Tauranga, Hamilton, Te Aroha and Whakatāne – with more expected from Taranaki, Auckland and Waikato.

Judges will be traveling in from New Plymouth, Tauranga, Huntly, Gisborne, Ngaruawahia, Hamilton and Atiamuri. One judge is based in Whakatāne.

All sorts of birds will be on display, with eight varieties of canaries including Yorkshire, Norwich, border, colour fed, non-colour fed, gloster, lizard and rollers.

Budgerigars, zebra and Bengalese finches will be there, cockatiels and a variety of parrots and parakeets.

Lovebirds, small finches such as gouldians, fire finches, cordon bleu, Java sparrows, and doves will be on show, along with blackbirds, thrush, greenfinch, chaffinch and goldfinches.

Birds are all judged on their type standard, determined by their shape, size and condition.

Roller canaries, however, are judged on their song. These birds can perform 12 different songs and receive points depending on their performance of each piece.  

Birds, products and nest boxes will be for sale alongside raffle tickets throughout the weekend.