Fantails are small friendly birds that you often see fluttering around in gardens. They eat mainly small insects, which they catch while they are flying around. They are very small, and parents raise several lots of chicks each year. It is hard work raising the chicks, as they need to be fed every 10 minutes. Cats, rats, stoats and mynahs are their main enemies, and often kill the young birds. Fantails live on forest edges, and in parks and gardens. The Maori name for fantail is Piwakawaka.