Critically endangered kākāpō numbers drop again with death of young female bird

Saturday, 24 April 2021

The number of critically endangered kākāpō in New Zealand has fallen again with the death of a young female.

Environmental conservation group Kākāpo Recovery posted on its Facebook page that Millie, who was hatched in 2009 and named after its technical advisor’s mum, Mildred Eason, had been found deceased – reducing the fragile population to just 204.

“Millie actually died in November, but we only found out recently. Because of the delay, we are unlikely to find out the cause of death. Unfortunately, she never got a chance to breed,” said Dr Andrew Digby, a kākāpō specialist for the Department of Conservation (DOC).

Losing a female that had yet to breed came as a huge blow to DOC as there are fewer females than males, and inbreeding meant only around a third of eggs are fertile.

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Margaret Maree, a 35-year-old kākāpō who picked up a fungal lung infection on her home of Codfish Island, was rehabilitated at Auckland Zoo in 2020.

Digby said Millie’s death was sad for the team.

“The kākāpō have huge personalities and our team grows to love these birds so although it is not a huge concern that Millie has died, we are saddened”.

“The breeding of the kākāpō is still looking hopeful, we have had two great mating seasons, in 2016 and 2019. We are also predicting 2022 will provide a strong population increase.”

“Moving forward, we are now implementing a more efficient data system so that deaths such as Millie’s will be tracked quicker. Our change in technology will also allow us to see decreases in activity faster and therefore detect signs of illness”.

Kākāpō are one of the longest-living bird species in the world, with an estimated lifespan between 40 and 80 years.

Sirocco the kÄkÄpÅ attempts to mate with zoologist Mark Carwardine in this screenshot from the BBC series Last Chance To See.

Fossil records indicate that in pre-Polynesian times, the kākāpō was New Zealand's third most common bird. However, their numbers have declined by 80 percent in the past 100 years.

The country’s kākāpō population currently lives on just four predator-free islands – Codfish Island/Whenua Hou, Te Hauturu-o-Toi/Little Barrier Island, Chalky Island/Te Kakahu, and Anchor Island.

Millie's death comes amid DOC's efforts to find a new island for the birds as their current habitats have hit capacity.

With no predator-free islands big enough to accommodate them, the only option is for DOC to find an island and then eradicate the pests.

In late 2020, 26 birds were moved to Te Kakahu, in Fiordland, and the re-location has so far proven successful.

Auckland Zoo has also made efforts to support the conservation of kākāpō.

Last year, 12 of the birds were treated by Auckland Zoo staff after an outbreak of aspergillosis - a mould or fungus that infects the lungs - on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island.

Margaret Maree was a relative of Millie’s and is one of the founder birds. Margaret survived the outbreak of aspergillosis due to many months of intensive treatment at the zoo.

Kākāpō rocketed to fame in 2009 when one named Sirocco encountered zoologist Mark Carwardine and became YouTube sensation.

Carwardine was filming the BBC documentary Last Chance to See with British actor Stephen Fry, when Si rocco attempted to mate with Carwardine’s head as Fry laughed from the sidelines.

The YouTube clip of Sirocco getting ‘up close and personal’ with presenter Mark Cawardine has had over 7 million views.