Keep an eye out for kereru¯

Hutt Valley residents are being asked to keep an eye out for any kereru¯ swooping across their backyards as the Great Kereru¯ Count takes flight across the country.

This year the count will run from September 22 to October 1.

A partnership between WWF-New Zealand, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington City Council, and NatureWatch NZ, the project helps build up where the native pigeon can, and can’t, be found.

The 2015 Great Kereru¯ Count showed the Pencarrow and Eastbourne area had the highest density of kereru¯ in the Wellington region.

WWF-New Zealand’s chief executive Livia Esterhazy said the count was vital not just for protecting the kereru¯, but for ensuring the health of forest ecosystems into the future.

‘‘Large flocks of more than 100 kereru¯ were once a common sight in skies over New Zealand – our ambition is to see them prolific again,’’ she said.

Kereru¯ were known as ‘‘gardeners of the skies’’, because they played a crucial role in dispersing seeds of native canopy trees such as tawa, taraire, and matai.

They were the only birds who did so, making them an essential part of forest regeneration.

Senior lecturer in ecology at Victoria University, Dr Stephen Hartley, said the project helped build up a detailed picture of where kereru¯ were distributed across the country, what they were feeding on and where they were found in towns and cities.

‘‘Even if you don’t see a kereru¯ in this time – that’s still useful information and important to submit.’’

This year, there are three options to make kereru¯ observations – via www.greatkererucount.nz, www.naturewatch.org.nz or with the iNaturalist App available on iTunes and Google Play.