'Desperate for a shag': fraudsters target New Zealand's bird of the year poll

Organisers said the flood of votes traced back to Australia was 'potentially someone's idea of a joke' New Zealand's annual Bird of the Year competition has been hit by foreign interference after 300 fraudulent votes, traced to Australia, were all cast in favour of the shag.The humorously-named seabird - also known as the kawau in New Zealand and as the black cormorant in Australia - received a flood of votes on Wednesday night that organisers said was "potentially someone's idea of a joke". Continue reading...