February 2020
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On September 17th the youngest chick of the 2019 breeding season became a juvenile, bringing the official population total to 213 birds – the highest population of kākāpō since conservation efforts began. Following two subsequent fatalities, the population currently stands at 211 individuals, of which 70 are juveniles from the 2019 season.
Kākāpō Recovery Programme Management
Update from Deidre Vercoe - Operations Manager
Kākāpō Expansion Project
With a growing population and the need for more kākāpō habitat there is a lot of development work for the team to do. To support this growth work, Kākāpō Recovery is thrilled that it has been provisionally awarded five years of additional funding from the International Visitor Levy (IVL). The IVL funded ‘Kākāpō Expansion Project’ aims to establish kākāpō at three new sites by 2021 and progress a number of initiatives to support the long term sustainable management of the population.
A number of Department of Conservation projects will be benefitting from additional funding from the International Visitor Levy which aims to grow tourism sustainably and enable visitors to directly contribute to the natural heritage they enjoy.
The first stage of this process is to upgrade Te Kākahu to a breeding island by translocating several females to the island. A small number of male kākāpō have thrived on this island for several years, and it is anticipated it will prove a suitable breeding site.
Work is underway to assess the suitability of Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari for kākāpō and determine the best management practices for kākāpō at a fenced mainland site. Several members of the Kākāpō Recovery team met with Maungatautari Ecological Island Trust recently to progress this work. This is an important step on the path to achieving the vision of kākāpō returning to mainland New Zealand.
Aspergillosis update
Unfortunately, there were two further deaths from Aspergillosis in September: juveniles Margaret-Maree-2-B-19 and Kuihi-3-B-19 were found dead on Whenua Hou. These deaths were unexpected given there had been no new cases for several months. In response several individuals were CT scanned to ensure these were isolated cases. To date, Aspergillosis has resulted a total of 21 cases including 9 deaths.
On February 5th a significant milestone was reached when the last kākāpō receiving treatment for Aspergillosis were finally given a clean bill of health and returned to Whenua Hou.
Kākāpō deaths
Adult kākāpō Felix, a founder individual, was found dead on Hauturu-O-Toi in September. It is likely he died of old age. This brings the number of the original founder birds from Rakiura/Stewart Island to just 24.
Staff changes
We have welcomed several new staff to the kākāpō team!
Alyssa Salton joins us in the Supervisor role, Galen Davitt as Infrastructure Ranger, and Sarah Little, Petrus Hedman, and Scott Latimer as new field-based Rangers. We have also had Sara Larcombe and Kate Lawrence trialling two new ‘island site lead’ roles.
Estelle Leask and Dr Lydia Uddstrom have joined us in 6-month roles as part of the kākāpō expansion project. Estelle’s work will focus on strengthening our active partnership with our Treaty Partner Ngāi Tahu in the management of the growing kākāpō population. Lydia’s focus is on progressing disease risk management strategies and tools to support population growth.
We have said farewell to our previous supervisor Karen Andrew, and rangers Nicki van Zyl, Margie Grant, Jinty MacTavish, Bonnie Wilkins, and Kaitlyn Hamilton who supported the busy 2019 breeding season. Thanks to all for their contributions and hard work!
Whenua Hou resupply
Once a year we organise for bulk items to be delivered to the island. After a busy year, it was time to restock and tidy up! Our Rangers worked hard to remove unneeded items from the island, and even undertook several beach cleans to keep the island as pristine as possible. Resupply wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support of other teams in DOC!
Annual Recovery Group meeting
In November our Recovery Group met in Auckland for two days. This was a valuable opportunity to update the group on the work of Kākāpō Recovery and discuss topics including breeding management, research projects, and future sites. We benefit from the diverse expertise of the external members of our Recovery Group.
Richard Henry
November 2019 marked the 90th Anniversary of Richard Henry’s death, who is often recognised as the grandfather of conservation in New Zealand, and who worked tirelessly to save kākāpō by moving them to Resolution island.
For a taste of life on the islands, see this video by Otis Berard who joined the team as a staff development opportunity.
Setting up Te Kākahu island as a breeding island. Photo by D. Vercoe
Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari showing fence and bush. Photo by P. Brown
Toiora returns from Auckland Zoo aspergillosis treatment. Photo by S. Little
Felix an old founder kākāpō. Photo DOC
Some new faces in the team. Photo by D. Vercoe
Alyssa Salton in action, weighing a kākāpō during health checks. Photo by D. Vercoe.
New infrastructure ranger Galen Davitt in the field. Photo by D. Vercoe
Whenua Hou resupply. Photo by K. Lawrence
"On the watch" Richard Henry standing beside the boat shed on Pigeon Island. c.1900. Image: Dr Roberts. Hocken Collections - Uare Taoka o Hakena, University of Otago | ©
Breeding season
Names for the juveniles from the 2019 breeding season are now being announced! Keep an eye on social media for these exciting updates!
Post-breeding season monitoring
Now that juveniles from the 2019 cohort are becoming fully independent our visits to check on their progress are becoming much less frequent. We aim to minimise human contact whilst ensuring the best outcome for the young birds, which we achieve by monitoring the birds remotely as much as possible.
Our supplementary feeding programme on Anchor has come to an end, and on Whenua Hou just a few birds remain on food as additional support following health issues. This gives kākāpō that have returned to the island after veterinary treatment the best chance to thrive.
Breeding season debrief & celebration
In October, we were finally able to get the whole team together in Invercargill for a full debrief following the breeding season. This was a great opportunity to reflect on our work, consider future improvements and celebrate the many successes. An evening of entertainment organised by our island site lead rangers proved the perfect way to relax after a busy breeding season.
Possible breeding on Hauturu
Breeding hasn’t happened on Hauturu since 2016 and can’t be predicted. As such, we are preparing for a potential breeding season on Hauturu in 2020. We are planning to use technology to monitor the birds remotely, and if breeding does occur we hope to improve our understanding of what resources are used to feed chicks and whether sufficient resources are available to successfully fledge chicks.
Kohitātea on the day he hatched in 2019. Photo by J. Osborne
Recent photo of Kohitātea. Photo by J. MacTavish
Remotely monitoring the kākāpō on Anchor Island. Photo by B. Jeynes
Hopper feeder. Photo by J. Crane
Hauturu. Photo by J. Osborne
Science and technology
Accolades
Recently, the work of two long-term staff of the Kākāpō Recovery Programme was recognised.
Operations Manager Deidre Vercoe received a Blake Leadership Award.
Conferences
Senior Ranger Dr Jodie Crane and veterinarian Dr Lydia Uddstrom attended the New Zealand Veterinary Association Wildlife Conference in November to give talks on the challenges associated with the Aspergillosis crisis.
Deidre Vercoe receives the Blake Leadership Award
Daryl Eason receives his Local Hero Award
Supporter shout out
Wildlife Rescue
Have you spotted kākāpō featuring on Choice TV’s ‘Wildlife Rescue New Zealand’? This new series highlights the amazing work of the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital, who were instrumental in the success of the 2019 breeding season through their contributions to the hand rearing of chicks, and Aspergillosis treatment.
Watch the episodes here.
Auckland Zoo
Our partners at Auckland Zoo have made two fantastic videos about their involvement with kākāpō work this breeding season.
Adoptions
We received record numbers of adoption requests over the last year and were kept especially busy over the festive season. Almost 600 adoption packages went out over November and December, a 50% increase on what we sent out for the same period in 2018. The money raised means we can do even more to support kākāpō – thank you!
Meridian
Meridian Energy, our National Partner renewed their partnership agreement for another three years to 2022. This funding will go towards looking after kākāpō on Whenua Hou and Anchor Islands, undertaking transmitter management, and furthering our nutrition research.
Talks
We’ve been busy giving talks to various groups recently! Operations Manager Deidre Vercoe gave a talk at a local Primary School in Invercargill, Senior Ranger Dr Jodie Crane was invited to give a talk at Invercargill City Council, Ranger Ricki-Ann Mitchell gave a talk for Forest & Bird in Nelson, and Ranger Jinty MacTavish gave a talk at Oamaru’s recent U3A gathering.
Lisa from the Dunedin Wildlife Hospital with a kākāpō chick during 2019 breeding season. Photo Dunedin Wildlife Hospital
Auckland Zoo kākāpō videos
Jinty MacTavish talks about the kākāpō at Oamaru . Photo by J. MacTavish
Jodie Crane talks at Invercargill City Council. Photo by C. Scobie
