Last week, a 146-day-old male chick died after a routine supplementary feeding was carried out. The rangers noticed the chick had laboured breathing after the feed. The bird’s condition deteriorated very quickly and unfortunately it died. The chick was underweight for its age and needed extra food to help it gain weight. The chick was sent to Massey University for a necropsy to determine the exact cause of death. Department of Conservation (DOC) Supervisor Jim Watts says the necropsy found a sizeable piece of rocky material (resembling charcoal) stuck in chick’s trachea, which led to the chick asphyxiating.