Eileen Mayo

Twice presumed extinct in the past, the kākāriki karaka (orangefronted parakeet) remains one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most endangered birds, with only a few hundred surviving in managed breeding programmes and South Island beech forests. The redcrowned kākāriki is more secure, with many populations now on predator-free islands and in fenced sanctuaries, alongside some mainland sites under intensive management. Both of these small green forest parrots depend on tree hollows for nesting, where eggs and chicks are vulnerable to rats and stoats. Recovery of the kākāriki karaka depends on intensive management at the Isaac Conservation and Wildlife Trust in Ōtautahi Christchurch, in partnership with Ngāi Tahu. Birds raised there are released into protected forest sites and offshore islands, helping to rebuild wild populations.

(Bird Land: Te Kāhui Manu 15 August 2026 – 8 February 2027)