November 28, 2023

Wayward kākāpō force Maungatautari sanctuary rethink

Adam Gifford Posted On November 28, 2023

Some kākāpō are spending too much time hanging around the fence at Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari, leading to the Department of Conservation shifting them elsewhere while new monitoring methods are investigated.

DOC kākāpō manager Deidre Vercoe says four escapes in six weeks, including one bird, Motupōhue, getting out twice, created a high monitoring workload.

Three of the 10 birds transferred since July have been returned to a southern sanctuary.

That means staff can keep closer tabs on the remaining nocturnal, ground-dwelling parrots while still preserving the integrity of the trial.

Kākāpō are flightless, but they are excellent climbers that can use their wings to “parachute” from treetops.

Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu kākāpō species representative Tāne Davis says Ngāi Tahu has worked closely with ngā iwi ki Maungatautari who jointly made the decision to return the three kākāpō to Fiordland.