5 Dollars - Elizabeth II 4th Portrait, Kakapo

The kākāpō was chosen for this issue as part of New Zealand's ongoing native wildlife series, but 2009 carried particular urgency: the species had only 91 known living individuals at the time, making it arguably the rarest bird on earth by total population count. Recovery efforts centered on Codfish Island had only recently begun showing measurable results.

Copper-nickel circulation-quality issues in this series saw limited actual spending use — most were absorbed by collectors immediately on release.