This design is based on an existing pattern (Easter Chickens by Janice Anderson), but I added sufficient elaborated details to justify a pattern of its own.

(I went to New Zealand for a holiday and fell in love with this nice and funny bird!)

The Pukeko is one of New Zealand’s most common birds, and I like its appearance very much. That striking blue colour, that overly expressive red beak, that cute little white triangle on its backside, and its clumsy long legs are just irresistible. It reminds me of our Dutch water hen (because of its appearance), but also of a chicken, in the way it moves and strolls around.

I had made the cute easter chickens by Janice Anderson before, and I decided to use this pattern as base for a pukeko. The parts that differ most from the original are the distinctive beak and the backside. But I also changed the size of the body (slimmer, longer), embroidered the eyes (no beads), and I did not crochet the legs but twisted yarn to make them. Also, I did not sew all parts together afterwards, but knitted the body and beak in the round (using magic loop technique).

This is my first pattern. It was not test knitted (other than by myself), so I’d welcome any comments or suggestions. Thanks!

Update (January 15th): I perfected some small details like typos and layout issues, so now the pdf is renamed as version 2. The content hasn’t changed.