A special treat for Island Song
Project Island Song has captured video recordings of the first wild-raised ka¯ka¯riki chicks in the Bay of Islands in half a century or more.
Some clever technology and considerable perseverance had produced many hours of groundbreaking footage of young birds not seen in the Bay for more than 50 years, Project Island Song project manager Richard Robbins said.
They were the offspring of ka¯ka¯riki (red-crowned parakeets) that were reintroduced to the Bay of Islands wildlife sanctuary Moturua Island in June last year, strategically placed motion cameras capturing the fledglings learning from their parents and feeding with their siblings.
“There could not be prouder parents than the Project Island Song partnership, all our sponsors, donors and hardworking volunteers,” Mr Robbins said.
This was thought to be the first time video footage such as this had been used to monitor the outcome of a ka¯ka¯riki reintroduction, the images providing hundreds of hours of highly useful research. It would be important in many ways, confirming the health of the birds, gauging their numbers, but most importantly leading to better understanding of the potential genetic viability of the new population as it developed.
The large amount of it was enabled by another first for the project, using millet seed feeding stations that were set up on the island before the birds’ arrival. Millet wasn’t a natural food source for ka¯ka¯riki, but they were very fond of it, and it was used to encourage them to stay on Moturua.
They were the first of the reintroduced species that could move further afield, even fly back to where they were collected from, but that wasn’t expected to the case for the new generation, given that parakeets are usually faithful to where they were raised.
Meanwhile, the video footage was part of extensive post-release monitoring, and has helped confirm the success of the operation to date, with 35 of the 40 birds released being recorded as still on the island. The other five could also still be there, but not using the feeding stations.
Each of the released ka¯ka¯riki had been given a unique leg band colour combination, and the video monitoring catalogue was now being analysed to determine any possible family groups of banded parents and unbanded offspring, which in turn could help assess the population growth.
“This project is the huge success it is because of the sustained support we get from our partners, The Guardians of the Bay of Islands, hapu¯ Nga¯ti Kuta and Patukeha, of Te Rawhiti, and the Department of Conservation, and the volunteer monitoring team,” Mr Robbins said.
“Also the generous financial support we received from Explore Group and Forest and Bird, and private donations. And of course all of our project members and supporters all over the country, who are hugely important.”
There were several species of ka¯ka¯riki, all endemic to New Zealand, this one being distinguished by a bright crimson forehead, crown, and a streak extending back beyond the eyes. Nesting generally occurred from October to December, the female incubating five to nine eggs for nearly three weeks, both parents sharing the feeding.
Chicks were fed on the ground for a period before they could fly, rendering them vulnerable to predators, which made the predator-pest-free islands in the Bay so valuable and important.
Ka¯ka¯riki usually lived solitary lives, or in pairs, but formed small flocks in autumn and winter. They make a loud and rapid ‘ki ki ki ki’ sound when in flight.
Their reintroduction was part of the ecological restoration of the pest-free wildlife sanctuaries of Ipipiri, the eastern Bay of Islands, Mr Robbins added, where they would be an important addition to the ecosystem, as the way they ate and digested seeds was believed to be needed for some native plants to germinate.