About this episode
The episode discusses the growth and monitoring of kākāpō chicks, including recent developments in their survival and tracking.
The tally of confirmed living kākāpō chicks goes down with two further deaths, but gets a welcome boost with the confirmation of a living chick in a previously inaccessible nest. This brings the number of living chicks to 93, ranging in weight from 770 grams to nearly 2.5 kilograms. On all three kākāpō breeding islands, the oldest kākāpō chicks are fledging and leaving their nests. They are still accompanied and fed by their mothers, but find their own shelter. Before chicks leave the nest for good, kākāpō rangers visit to insert microchips as a permanent identification, and to attach transmitters that enable the Kākāpō Team to locate the chicks and monitor their activity levels remotely. Send any Kākāpō Files questions and comments to kakapo@rnz.co.nz. In this episode: 00:00 – Introduction 02:34 – Big chick Huhū-A1 using a special ramp to leave the nest 05:23 – Ranger Petrus with the latest island news 06:44 - A chick is finally confirmed in Rimu’s cliff-top nest 10:09 - Two more of Waa’s chicks die so latest living chick tally is 93 11:46 - Update on Pearl-B3 and sick chicks 13:17 - Chick transmitters 19:55 - Tanē Davis on Ngāi Tahu’s relationship with kākāpō 27:35 - Vet Lydia…
People in this episode
Guests: Petrus, Tanē Davis, Lydia Uddstrom
Topics covered
- kākāpō chicks
- breeding
- conservation
- wildlife monitoring
- New Zealand
Keywords
- kākāpō
- chicks
- breeding islands
- microchips
- transmitters
- conservation
- wildlife
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Ngāi Tahu, Kākāpō Team
Places: Rimu, Waa, kākāpō breeding islands
More episodes of Kākāpō Files II
- Kākāpō Adoption Birds · May 18, 2026 · 39 min
- Kākāpō Island Diary · April 20, 2026 · 36 min
- Biggest Kākāpō Breeding Season · April 2, 2026 · 33 min
- Kākāpō Birth Notices · March 23, 2026 · 30 min
- Lots of Kākāpō Babies · March 9, 2026 · 31 min
- Kākāpō Baby Boom · February 23, 2026 · 21 min
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