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Our Changing World: Kākāpō update with Dr Andrew Digby
Claire Concannon and Dr Andrew Digby talk about all things kākāpō: that habitat trial and where the birds are now, the next breeding season, and Andrew’s hopes for the future of this iconic manu. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
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Our Changing World: A year of mainland kākāpō
In July 2023 four male kākāpō were released into the fenced Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari – part of a new habitat trial to investigate suitable locations for the growing kākāpō population. But after a further six were introduced, the kākāpō began to wander – beyond the fence. A year on, and several escapes later, what’s been learned? And what’s next for kākāpō in Maungatautari? There are plenty of night-time wanderers in New Zealand that you might expect to come across driving on back roads – rats, mice, a seemingly endless number of possums.But it’s not often that you round a corner to come face to face with a kākāpō.Elwin’s escapadeThis was the surprising sight that faced Tyler James Lindsay very early one morning in January 2024.A Cambridge local, Tyler was driving a milk tanker along Scott Road, northeast of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, when suddenly he saw before him a strange shape.“Just a big green bird. Just in the middle of the road looking straight at my lights, I think it was rather confused,” he says.Luckily, Tyler is into native birds, so he was aware that kākāpō had been introduced to the fenced sanctuary six months earlier. He knew exactly what he was looking at.The next day, Tyler’s report made its way to Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari kākāpō ranger Dan Howie, who quickly began the search for the elusive Elwin.“Such an incredible interaction that he saw this bird out there – in the middle of the road no less – which is absolutely terrifying as kākāpō ranger,” says Dan.But this was not the first time, nor the last, that Dan would feel that fear.The habitat trialKākāpō numbers are growing. In 1995 there were just 51 kākāpō and the threat of losing them forever was all too real.A decade ago, around the time that Dr Andrew Digby joined the Kākāpō Recovery team, there were just over 120 kākāpō. Today there are 247.Intensive management and three quite successful breeding seasons have enabled this doubling of kākāpō numbers in the last 10 years. Initially, the challenge was to save the charismatic, flightless parrots from extinction. Now, the team also has an added challenge: where to put them.To date, the majority of kākāpō have lived on offshore predator-free islands in the rohe of Ngāi Tahu – Whenua Hou / Codfish Island next to Rakiura / Stewart Island, and Pukenui / Anchor Island in Fiordland. But these islands are getting full…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
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2022 A Boomer Year for Kākāpō
Alison Ballance joins the kākāpō recovery team on Pukenui Anchor Island to hear how the 2021/2022 kākāpō breeding season is going.It's been very quiet on the kākāpō front for the last two years, but this year is another big one for the rare bird.In 2019, the endangered flightless night parrot had its largest breeding season on record, as recounted in the RNZ podcast series the Kākāpō Files and Voice of the Kākāpō. After a rollercoaster ride of successes and setbacks, 72 chicks fledged, temporarily boosting the kākāpō population to 213 birds.Since then, there has been a slow attrition due to deaths of both old and young birds, which saw this breeding season kick off with 201 birds.Most importantly, this number included 57 females of breeding age, which are spread across three southern kākāpō islands: Pukenui-Anchor Island (in Fiordland), Te Kakahu-Chalky Island (also in Fiordland) and Whenua Hou-Codfish Island (near Stewart Island). Forty six of those females have bred this year, laying a grand total of 139 eggs.By autumn, 57 chicks out of the 60 that hatched were doing well, most of them being raised by their mothers or foster mothers. In previous breeding seasons many chicks have been hand-reared, but Deidre Vercoe, manager of DOC's Kākāpō Recovery Programme, says that this year the team was taking a more hands-off approach. This meant no double clutching, and most eggs were left to hatch in nests rather than in incubators.There is now a much greater reliance on technology to allow remote monitoring, with every bird wearing a smart radio transmitter that sends information about the wearer to a centralised computer database. Te Kakahu-Chalky island is the most hands-off breeding island, and indications from activity records being sent remotely from the three nesting mothers suggests they are still raising the island's three chicks.Aspergillosis outbreakUnfortunately, the onset of autumn marked a bit of a turning point in the breeding season. After a period of hot dry weather in Fiordland, the female Jemma, on Pukenui Island, died from aspergillosis. This fungal disease can be deadly, with nine kākāpō dying from it in the 2019 breeding season, although a number of other kākāpō were successfully treated.A second Pukenui female, Roha, has since been diagnosed with severe aspergillosis and is fighting for her life at Auckland Zoo. Some chicks are at the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital being treated for aspergillosis as well as injuries such as broken legs…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
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Kākāpō population hits new high of 213 birds
The youngest kākāpō chick has passed 150 days old, bringing the number of living juveniles to 71 and the overall kākāpō population to 213, in episode 24 of the Kākāpō Files.The kākāpō population has reached a new high of 213 birds, following the largest breeding season on record. This is a significant increase from the 147 birds that were alive at the beginning of the season.The new total includes a record-breaking 71 juvenile birds.Department of Conservation's Kākāpō Recovery Team scientist Dr Andrew Digby says: "there are probably more kākāpō alive today than at any time in the past 70 years."Kākāpō Recovery manager Deidre Vercoe says the next challenge will be to find new predator-free homes for the giant endangered parrots, as the two main breeding islands are at capacity.The 2018-2019 kākāpō breeding season has been one for the record books in many ways. It kicked off in December 2018 with the earliest mating on record, and by the time mating ended in April it was also the longest breeding season.Breeding occurred on two of the three kākāpō islands - Whenua Hou / Codfish Island and Anchor Island, where every adult female except one bred.Overall, 253 eggs were laid, although only 86 hatched, due to high levels of infertility and early embryo deaths.Of those 86, 72 reached 150 days old, which is when they are considered to have graduated from being a chick to a juvenile. Stella-3-B was the last chick to reach the 150-day milestone on 17 September.Juveniles will not be counted as adults until they reach breeding age, at five years old.Number of aspergillosis deaths rises to 8The current total of living juveniles is now 71, following the unexpected death last week of Margaret-Maree-2-B. A post-mortem showed he had died from aspergillosis, despite receiving an all-clear from the vets when an earlier CT scan showed no sign of the disease.Kākāpō scientist Andrew Digby says they are investigating closely, to try and find out whether the medical check-up had missed a small infection or whether the juvenile contracted the deadly fungal disease after the check-up. He says the latter scenario would be very concerning, as all infections to date were associated with infected nests.Margaret-Maree-2-B was one of three chicks conceived by artificial insemination. Nora-3-B, whose father is the Fiordland male Sinbad, is the only one of these three still alive.The death of Margaret-Maree-2-B brings the total number of kākāpō killed by aspergillosis to 8, including adult females Huhana and Hoki, as well as six chicks…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
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24:17
Kākāpō chicks growing up
The kākāpō chicks are graduating to being juveniles and only seven birds are still sick with aspergillosis, in episode 23 of the Kākāpō Files.Forty-two of this year's kākāpō chicks have graduated to being juveniles. They pass this milestone when they reach 150 days old.A further 30 chicks will reach the juvenile stage over the coming weeks.Eight kākāpō chicks have been cured of aspergillosis, and will soon be returned to the wild.Daryl Eason from the Kākāpō Recovery Team at the Department of Conservation says there are still 18 birds being treated at various wildlife hospitals. Eight of these will soon be discharged, seven are still being treated for the fungal disease aspergillosis, and a further five are being treated for noon-aspergillosis related conditions.Alice-3-A was one of the first kākāpō chicks to be diagnosed with aspergillosis in May, and at the time she was diagnosed with multiple granulomas, which are walled-off areas of fungal infection. She has responded well to treatment, and her lungs and respiratory system are now clear of infection.Auckland Zoo vet James Chatterton told Daryl that he is amazed, as he has never encountered a bird with audible respiratory problems of this intensity that has recovered.Ra-2-B was found on Anchor Island with one leg caught in the fork of a tree, leading to severe dislocation and loss of circulation to that leg. She is being treated at the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital, and although her circulation has been mostly restored she may lose several toes. Daryl says it will be some time before the skin recovers and it becomes clear whether the tendons will recover from the trauma.Queenie-3-A, who had a broken leg, has now fully recovered and will be returned to the wild soon.Daryl reports that some juveniles, such as Suzanne-3-A, are now fully independent in the wild, have left their mothers and siblings and are ranging widely as they explore the islands.He says the final official tally of how many chicks were produced in this year's breeding won't happen until everyone has been discharged from the vet hospitals.Gadget the rodent detector dogThe story about conservation dog Gadget first played on Our Changing World. It was recorded on Whenua Hou and highlights the efforts that go into keeping pests off New Zealand's conservation islands.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details
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