‘Rare’ weka sighting in a Taranaki backyard
Department of Conservation staff are asking people to report sightings of a weka in South Taranaki, after one of the birds was caught in a backyard in Manaia.
Photos seen by staff show the first weka may have a mate, DOC Taranaki senior biodiversity ranger Cameron Hunt said in a press release.
Although it’s unknown how the birds got to Manaia, it’s possible the weka were released illegally.
‘‘It’s entirely unusual for one to turn up in Manaia.’’
Although the large brown flightless birds known for their feisty and curious personalities were common in many alpine areas in the South Island, they had not been sighted in Taranaki for decades.
Their closest known natural habitat in the North Island was near Opotiki or the Hauraki Gulf.
Manaia man Pete Andreoli did a double take when he saw a video of a weka wandering around his son’s backyard in the little South Taranaki township.
‘‘I thought ‘what the hell’s a weka doing in Manaia?’,’’ he said.
He managed to trap the bird using a trout net on a long pole and popped it into his vegetable shade house for safekeeping.
‘‘It took a bit of catching as it had some good side steps.’’
His call to the 0800DOC HOT hotline resulted in minor confusion as the ranger answering the call was from the South Island, where weka are relatively common, and told him to release the bird in the forest.
But instead, Andreoli got hold of the local DOC office to determine the best course of action for the weka.
The bird was now being cared for, off-display, at Brooklands Zoo. It hoped DNA tests will give DOC a further piece of the puzzle as to where the bird originated from.
A decision would then be made on where the weka, whose sex was unknown, would be rehomed.
Hunt said weka were predators of native fauna, especially burrow-nesting seabirds, ground nesting birds, reptiles and large invertebrates.
‘‘If weka were to get on Taranaki Maunga they pose a real risk to the native wildlife while the ecosystems and populations are still in such a recovery phase,’’ he said.
Weka ‘‘occupy a problematic conservation niche’’ due to their scavenging habits.
Weka are protected on mainland New Zealand, and it is illegal to catch, hold or release them without permission from DOC. Doing so can result in fines or prosecution.