The summer season is expected to bring a record number of k\u0101k\u0101p\u014d chicks, according to conservation scientists.<\/p>\n
The chair of the K\u0101k\u0101p\u014d Recovery Group believes all breeding-age females may lay eggs, making it the most successful season in nearly five decades.<\/p>\n
Currently, the nocturnal parrots are in four predator-free sanctuaries, but Auckland University professor Jacqueline Beggs said growth would require new habitats.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\nUniversity of Auckland Professor Jacqueline Beggs.
\nPhoto: Supplied \/ University of Auckland\n<\/p>\n
A successful breeding season depended on both the amount of fruit on rimu trees and all female parrots being in good breeding condition, something that was not common.<\/p>\n
Beggs said the k\u0101k\u0101p\u014d was one of the few critically endangered species to make a genuine recovery and the group now hoped for chicks from all 84 breeding-age females.<\/p>\n
This would significantly boost the population of the flightless native parrot, which currently sat at 237 birds.<\/p>\n
The last big breeding season was in 2022, when 57 chicks fledged.<\/p>\n
Mating was expected to take place about Christmas and January. The eggs would then be laid in February and March, hatching a month later.<\/p>\n
About next September and October, the chicks should be independent and would be officially added to the parrot’s population.<\/p>\n
Sign up for Ng\u0101 Pitopito K\u014drero<\/a>, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.<\/strong><\/p>\n