kakapo

Kākāpō (Strigops habroptilus) or ‘Night Parrot’ in Māori (kaka means parrot and po means night), is on the critically endangered species list with an estimated population of 83-124. The Kakapo mostly range Codfish Island also known as Whenua Hou, managed by the Department of Conservation. This is the world’s largest parrot. An adult can weigh in at about 3.5 kilograms/8 lbs. It’s flightless and nocturnal. Their natural habitat are mountain forests in the south west of New Zealand’s South Island. This ground-dwelling, herbivorous parrot shelters by day in bushes, behind rocks, beneath tree roots, in hollow logs or in shallow burrows. At night, it hunts for food – shoots, fruit, foliage, rhizomes, some mosses, ferns, fungi and the odd lizard. The Kakapo is important to the Māori, featuring in their legends and folklore. The Māori hunted the Kakapo for its meat for food and feathers to make clothing. The arrival of the Polynesians, followed by the Europeans in the 1800′s, introduced pests and livestock bringing about the decline of the Kakapo. Now, due to the introduction cats, rats, ferrets, and stoats, the Kakapo populations have been almost wiped-out. Ground-nesting and totally flightless, this giant parrot is a vulnerable bird. It is very shy, has a mottled-green plumage and depends on its natural camouflage for protection. Although if necessary, the Kakapo can run at surprising speed. The Kakapo’s life expectancy averages around 90 years. It mates using the lek-mating system, which is an elaborate courtship behaviour where the male digs shallow bowls in the ground. This territory is marked out by tracks, which connect up one or several depressions (bowls). Kakapo keep their bowls meticulously clean. The pair weave displays and have a booming call that can travel up to 5 km. The Kakapo’s life-cycle turns slowly. Males start breeding at about 4 years old, while females only breed at around 6 years. Breeding does not take place annually, but appears to be dependent on food supplies availability, such as the fruiting of rimu trees, and will likely happen only every 2-4 years. The two Fiordland islands, Resolution and Secretary are being prepared as self-sustaining ecosystems with suitable habitat for the Kakapo, the world’s rare giant parrot, as it battles its way back from the brink of extinction.