Taylor Swift ruffles feathers after being accused of endangering rare New Zealand bird during video shoot

Taylor Swift has been accused of endangering the dotterel, a rare New Zealand bird species, while filming a music video at a beach near Auckland.

Conservationists said the singer’s production company was given permission to film on the beach and use two vehicles on the sand but flouted the restrictions and used a dozen vans and four-wheel-drives.

"It's really disappointing that such a large number of vehicles would park all over the beach and drive all over the beach," Sandra Coney, from Waitakere Ranges Local Board, told Radio New Zealand.

Asked whether she was willing to follow Ms Swift’s famous lyrical advice and “shake it off”, Ms Coney said: "I don't know whether Shake It Off is the right thing. But she's got another song [Wildest Dreams] that says 'say you'll remember me'. Maybe I'll do that instead."

Ms Swift arrived in New Zealand this week to film the video on Monday at Bethells Beach near Auckland.

Cherokee Films, the local company behind the production, defended the singer and insisted it complied with the permit to use the beach and avoided the local dotterel habitat.

"No dotterel were harmed," the company said in a statement.

“Taylor Swift and her management team were in no way at fault and did not do anything that violated permits or ordinances… In acknowledgement of the concern this has added to those in charge of protecting local dotterel population Cherokee Films will make a donation to the breeding program as we support your concerns.”

According to New Zealand’s department of conversation, the nation has only 1,700 remaining dotterels, a camouflaged shorebird known for its “chip-chip” call.

"Because they are so hard to see, nests are sometimes crushed by people, vehicles, horses or stock," the department’s website warns.