Page 7 - Codfish Island News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

Like most websites we use cookies. If you’re happy with that, just carry on as normal (close this bar) - otherwise click here to find out more. 2 Jun 2021 Latest research: petrels divided, vultures pushed together by climate change Join us for a bite-sized round-up of advances published in our journal Bird Conservation International. This issue covers how to translocate Cook’s Petrel to its former range, how climate change will force vulture species to compete, and how the public uncovered vital data on the Yellow Cardinal. Cook's Petrel © Spatuletail / Shutterstock By Jess...

Fossil records indicate that in pre-Polynesian times, the kākāpō was New Zealand's third most common bird. However, their numbers have declined by 80 per cent in the past 100 years. They are the heaviest parrot species in the world with females weighing around 1.4 kg, and males 2.2 kg. The country’s kākāpō population currently lives on just four predator-free islands – Codfish Island/Whenua Hou, Te Hauturu-o-Toi/Little Barrier Island, Chalky Island/Te Kakahu, and Anchor Island. With no predator-free islands big enough to accommodate them, the only option is for DOC to find an ...

Whenua Hou diving petrel. Photo: DOC There are just 200 of the birds left at a single breeding colony in the dunes on Whenua Hou, near Rakiura / Stewart Island. The birds - known as kuaka in Ngāi Tahu dialect - were once widely found in coastal dunes across southern New Zealand, but it wasn't until 2018 that it was discovered they were a distinct species of petrel. However, invasive predators destroyed all breeding colonies except one. Although Whenua Hou has been predator-free since 2000, other threats remain, including storms, climate change, and competition with common diving petrels. Th...

Critically endangered Whenua Hou diving petrels, or kuaka in Ngāi Tahu dialect, may need greater protection from lights on vessels in seas surrounding...

Chris McKeen/Stuff Margaret Maree, a kākāpō from Codfish Island, has survived her battle with a potentially fatal fungal lung infection (first published in 2020). The need for a new home for New Zealand’s critically endangered kākāpō is growing ever more important as the species nears a near breeding season. Kākāpō currently reside on four predator-free islands – Codfish Island/Whenua Hou, Te Hauturu-o-Toi/Little Barrier Island, Chalky Island/Te Kakahu and Anchor Island. But their current habitats have hit capacity and the Department of Conservation is searching for a new islan...