Rare parrot numbers set to soar
Date: 19-Feb-02
Country: NEW ZEALAND
There are only 62 of the large, flightless, nocturnal parrots left in the world, as they are easy prey to rats, stoats and other predators introduced to New Zealand by humans.
Almost all kakapo live on remote Codfish Island, a wind-swept predator-free islet of less than five square km (two square miles) near Stewart Island in New Zealand's deep south, where Department of Conservation (DOC) staff recently discovered 52 kakapo eggs.
"We expect that at least 50 percent of the eggs will successfully hatch. If this breeding season continues in the way it started, in three to five years we will be able to reduce the human intervention needed to ensure the survival of this species," DOC kakapo recovery team leader Paul Jansen said yesterday.
Previously, no kakapo egg had been found for three years and some of the nesting birds had not laid for more than 20 years.
An abundance of the one of the kakapo's favourite foods, seeds from the native rimu tree, and supplementary food provided conservation workers were behind the breeding success, DOC said.
Unlike almost all of the world's 300-odd parrot species which are active during the day, the bright green kakapo, about the size of a large chicken weighing up to 3.5 kg (7.7 pounds), is nocturnal.
Evolving in New Zealand for thousands of years without any natural predators, the kakapo was ill-suited to survive the arrival of humans and the predators they brought with them.
New Zealand has a good track record for bringing bird species back from the brink of extinction including successful efforts to save the tiny black robin, which at one stage numbered five birds but has rebounded to more than 250.