Hear thee, hear thee - hihi birds come back to Taranaki
One of New Zealand’s rarest bush birds, the hihi or stitch-bird, has returned to Taranaki after 130 years.
Forty hihi were released into the bush at Rotokare Scenic Reserve near Eltham last Sunday, sanctuary manager Simon Collins said.
The birds, 20 males and 20 females, were translocated from Tiritiri Matangi in the Hauraki Gulf. The hihi was once common throughout the North Island but had been extinct in Taranaki for 130 years.
This latest colony was the seventh hihi population in New Zealand. The total number of birds left is about 3500. Looking after the hihi would be a huge effort, he said, and the risks of failure were real.
Hihi are predominantly nectar feeders and would need to be fed in the sanctuary with a specialised sugar and water mixture.
All but the one remaining natural population require supplementary feeding to ensure breeding success, presumably due to the now very limited extent of suitable habitat for the hihi to safely roam, and loss of some of their natural food and mature forest.
‘‘We’re not frightened of the risk of failure at all, we accept that risk and are absolutely convinced that without trying, the species is sure to fail,’’ Collins said. ‘‘There are so few places these birds could even stand a chance, and we’re fortunate and privileged to be able to provide this opportunity - we’ve spent three years working with the experts to establish that this is an appropriate project for the individual hihi, and for the species.’’
Hihi is so named for the bright colours of the male feathers - meaning ‘ray of sunshine’ in Maori. The European name stitchbird describes the distinctive call they make, a ‘stitch ... stitch’ sound. The hihi have joined a variety of other rare and endangered species in the sanctuary including kiwi, saddlebacks, fernbirds and spotless crakes. Species such as the North Island robin and New Zealand falcon have selfreintroduced.