Returning celebrity pulling the crowds
Move over Pink – another celebrity is performing before full houses in Dunedin. Sirocco the ka¯ ka¯ po¯ is back.
The cheeky parrot and official ‘‘spokesbird’’ of the Department of Conservation (DOC) is on display at Dunedin’s Orokonui Ecosanctuary this month.
Just two days ago, he was living on a remote island in Fiordland, but appears to be at ease with being in the limelight once more.
A respiratory illness meant Sirocco had to be hand-reared by DOC rangers as a chick, so he was comfortable around humans, DOC threatened species ambassador Nicola Toki said.
And she should know.
Sirocco once tried to mate with her gumboots – and her head. ‘‘I considered it a privilege,’’ she said.
The ka¯ ka¯ po¯ is now returning from his self-imposed exile for his first public performance in four years. He hid on his Fiordland island home for two years, reappearing just in time for this 21st birthday earlier this year.
The cheeky parrot became a worldwide phenomenon after he attempted to mate with zoologist Mark Carwardine’s head on the BBC programme Last Chance to See, starring Stephen Fry.
Almost 8 million people watched the YouTube clip, which features Fry telling Carwardine: ‘‘You are being shagged by a rare parrot.’’
Nothing quite so X-rated happened when Sirocco welcomed a tour group on Sunday night, where he preferred to be hand-fed pine nuts from handler Daryl Eason, and let out the occasional squawk.
‘‘Sirocco is not a captive bird. He lives in the wild most of the time. He just happens to love people and that works for us because people love to see him,’’ Toki said. Tickets to Orokonui Ecosanctuary’s night-time tours have been selling fast, with people eager to catch a glimpse of one the estimated 149 ka¯ ka¯ po¯ left in existence.
Toki anticipated the population would soon be growing, as the upcoming breeding season was predicted to be a bumper one.
‘‘Our biggest problem now is . . . we are running out of room. Where are we going to put them without enough predator-free places for them?’’ Toki said.
It will likely be his only appearance until at least 2020.
‘‘Sirocco . . . lives in the wild most of the time. He just happens to love people.’’
DOC threatened species ambassador Nicola Toki