Kakapo season 2013-14

OrangePerson

OrangePerson

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
Cautious optimism for some breeding this season

High hopes for chicks

Despite food sources being below desired levels, the Department of Conservation is confident the first skrarks of kakapo chicks will be heard on Cod Fish Island since 2011, bolstering the numbers of the critically endangered species.
Male kakapo have begun booming to attract a mate on Cod Fish Island and DOC is expecting the ladies to respond to their advances.
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Hope I've not doomed them by starting a new thread.
 
From Facebook

There's been plenty of activity on Codfish Island; fantastic booming from the boys and, if calculations are accurate, it's possible we'll have mating as early as next week!
As a result we've opened up some nest-minding volunteer opportunities on our website. Register if you're keen!
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From Facebook

We've got exciting news from Hauturu (Little Barrier Island), where we've transferred NINE kakapo to...THREE of the six boys are booming madly and TWO of the three girls are showing strong interest!
This is awesome news for Kakapo Recovery because we are trialling the island to gauge its potential to host a breeding population, without the need for supplementary feeding. The birds were moved there mid-2012, so to have such strong mating behaviour is a great sign
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It doesn't specify but I think these are on Codfish.

Edit - she is on Codfish and is always the earliest bird to lay but hasn't hatched many chicks from her 22 eggs.

All about Lisa
 
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Still sounding quite hopeful…

Facebook again

YIPEEEEE!!! Gulliver - one of our three most genetically precious kakapo - has mated for the very first time!! He was chosen by Aranga and if we successfully hatch chicks the offspring will have his rare Fiordland genes!!
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and

This is another shout out for nestminding volunteers, especially those who live in southern New Zealand and can help out at short notice! We've had another female mate - Pearl with Felix - so potentially could have five nests within the next month!
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This year is shaping up to be major mast year for beech trees, with around one million tonnes of seeds expected to fall in autumn - a 1 in 10-15 years event. I know kakapo breeding is linked to the amount of rimu seeds available, but I can't remember if beech masts are also helpful for them - if so this should be a good year for them.

Details of the mast season, and the Department of Conservation's response, can be found here: 1080 Drops To Increase in DOC 'Battle For Birds',... | Stuff.co.nz
 
good news to start the year!!

First kakapo eggs in three years - environment | Stuff.co.nz
One of the world's rarest parrots, the kakapo, is nesting for the first time in three years, the Department of Conservation reported today.

Kakapo Recovery has discovered two females nesting on Whenua Hou (Codfish Island) near Stewart Island.

It will be another week before it is known if the eggs are fertile and if so, this will be the first successful breeding season since 2011.

"We are really starting to fizz, with seven female already having mated," Kakapo Recovery programme manager Deidre Vercoe Scott said.

"That includes Huhana who, at just five-years-old, is the youngest female we've ever known, to mate."

The two known nests belong to Lisa, an experienced kakapo mum, and Tumeke, who has bred before but had infertile eggs - there is a 40 per cent infertility rate for kakapo.

Mother kakapo feed their chicks rimu fruit, and poor crops on the island during the past two summers had halted breeding.

This year the fruit supply seemed patchy in places, but Vercoe Scott said the birds were obviously convinced there was enough to raise their young.

"From a conservative estimate of five to 10 nests at the beginning of the season, the team is now preparing for the possibility there could be up to 15," she said.

The national kakapo population is 124, up from a low of 51 in 1995.

Listed internationally as critically endangered, the species is native to New Zealand.

Kakapo, are flightless but good walkers and tree-climbers - despite being the heaviest parrot in the world, weighing up to 2 kilograms. They are nocturnal, and breed every two to four years.

All remaining kakapo are now managed by the Department of Conservation on three offshore islands: Whenua Hou (Codfish Island), Anchor Island in Fiordland, and Little Barrier Island (Hauturu-o-Toi) near Auckland.
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From Facebook

EGGS!! We have EGGS!! The first two girls to mate - Lisa and Tumeke - are both on nests with TWO eggs each!! We'll know in about a week whether they're fertile! And guess what else?! We've now had seven females mate, including Huhana, who is only 5 and the youngest we've ever known to breed!
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Hmmm… Chlidonias's superior offering wasn't there when I started posting this weak effort!
 
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From Facebook

Lisa - who laid two eggs is now incubating just one after the embryo in the other died...

Aranga - who mated with Gulliver AND Jimmy - is sitting on two freshly laid eggs and...

Rakiura has so far laid one egg. We are still waiting news of the three other females who have mated: Huhana, Esperance and Pearl...
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Was mentioned previously Tumeke's (I think) two eggs were infertile.
 
Facebook again

In today's update we confirm there are five viable eggs on Codfish Island. Four of them are in incubators at the moment, giving them the best chance possible, with the fifth being cared for on the nest by Huhana. Here's the breakdown:
Lisa = 1 x egg (incubator) - sitting on dummy
Huhana = 2 x eggs (1 on nest; 1 incubator)
Rakiura = 2 x eggs (2 incubator) - sitting on dummy
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Kakapo population reaches 125 after first successful hatching in three years.

Story here: Kakapo hatches despite crushed egg | Stuff.co.nz

The first kakapo chick in three years has beaten the odds to increase the critically endangered population of parrots.

The egg holding the chick was found badly crushed with staff at the Kakapo Recovery Programme fearing the worst.

However, some kiwi ingenuity, a bit of tape and glue helped ensure a little miracle on Codfish Island.

Painstaking repairs to the crushed egg have paid dividends with the arrival of the first kakapo chick since 2011.

Lisa One hatched on Friday under the anxious gaze of the Kakapo Recovery team, on Codfish Island.

There had been concern the chick would not survive after the egg - belonging to kakapo mother Lisa - was last week found crushed, on the nest.

Recovery programme manager Deidre Vercoe Scott said senior kakapo ranger Jo Ledington had done an incredible job carefully repairing the egg with tape and glue.

"We only have five viable eggs on the island and this one was the first laid. It was touch and go for a few days but with the special care and expertise of our team, the dedication has paid off."

Lisa One is in an incubator on the island and receiving round-the-clock attention, including regular feeding, weighing and checks. It will be several weeks before it's known which sex it is.

The other four eggs are also in incubator care and are expected to hatch at various stages during the next few weeks.

Lisa One's arrival has increased the total population of the critically endangered New Zealand parrot to 125.
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What has happened this year?:confused: It doesn't seem like a typical breeding season, at least on Codfish Island, with just a very few eggs, a lot of human intervention (more than usual) and primarily artificial incubation being used. Perhaps because of so few eggs?
 
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