Kākāpō chicks make safe return
10 Jul 2009
New Zealand’s kākāpō recovery team has successfully returned the last four kākāpō chicks to their birthplace on Whenua Hou / Codfish Island this morning (10.07.09), marking a significant milestone for the 2009 breeding season.
The four baby kākāpō were among 26 chicks removed from the island in April and hand-reared in a special facility in Invercargill after a shortage of their staple diet - ripened rimu fruit - threatened the chicks’ survival.
Now 90 days old, the chicks will spend up to six weeks in temporary outdoor pens while they acclimatise to the island conditions and are weaned off the hand-rearing diet.
At the end of their acclimatisation, each kākāpō will be fitted with a tracking transmitter and slowly introduced into the wild in small groups around the island.
Relief for kākāpō recovery team
The kākāpō recovery team who worked tirelessly around-the-clock for three months to ensure the chicks’ survival say it is a major relief to see the birds return to the island safely.
While there are still risks, as is the case for any young animal when it goes out on its own, being on predator-free Whenua Hou / Codfish Island under the ever-watchful eye of a team of dedicated DOC staff means they are as safe as they can be.
2009 kākāpō breeding season
The return of the baby kākāpō to Whenua Hou is the latest effort in a long and arduous mating season, but one which is proving very successful.
The returning chicks are among the 33 that hatched and survived on Whenua Hou / Codfish Island this breeding season, bringing the critically endangered kākāpō population to 124 - more than double the number of birds alive little over a decade ago.
New Zealand Conservation Minister Tim Groser said the bumper breeding season was a "fantastic reward" for all the DOC staff and many volunteers who had worked so hard to build up kākāpō numbers over the years.
More than 30 DOC workers and volunteers have helped with the breeding programme on Whenua Hou this season.
Conservation in partnership
DOC’s kākāpō recovery work is actively supported by a partnership involving Rio Tinto Alcan NZ, New Zealand Aluminium Smelters and the New Zealand Royal Forest & Bird Protection society.
First signed over 20 years ago, the agreement is one of DOC’s longest running conservation partnerships and has already injected over NZ$3 million towards breeding programmes and predator-proof sanctuaries for the flightless parrot.
Background: Kākāpō
- The kākāpō is the world’s heaviest parrot - males can weigh over 2kg.
- Unique among land birds, kākāpō can store large amounts of energy as body fat.
- It is the only parrot to have a 'lek' mating system: in summer, kākāpō males compete for 'calling posts' in dug-outs, from where they ‘boom’ (call) each night for a female.
- The kākāpō's low-frequency mating boom travels several kilometres.
- It is the only parrot to have an inflatable thoracic air sac.
- Kākāpō breed every three to four years.
- A bird can range several kilometres in one night.
- Kākāpō are flightless but good at climbing trees.
- Kākāpō are herbivores that feed on roots, leaves and fruit.
- Kākāpō once ranged from near sea level to high in the mountains.
- Possibly as defence against an ancient predator - the giant eagle - kākāpō became nocturnal and learned to 'freeze' (remain still) when in danger.
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