Six months after this record-breaking kākāpō breeding season began, all 91 living chicks have fledged and left the nest. The chicks remain with their kākāpō mums and are still being fed by them, as well as eating a range of plant material, and as cold wet midwinter weather sets in the chicks are learning to find dry roost sites. The Kākāpō Team’s Daryl Eason and Andrew Digby answer listener questions, including why did Kākāpō cam star Rakiura spend so much time in the nest digging, what can you learn from a piece of egg shell, and could old museum specimens be a source of lost kākāpō genes?

Send any Kākāpō Files questions and comments to [email protected]

In this episode:
02:06 – Island news with ranger Daniella Whitaker
06:21 – Update on Kākāpō Cam star Rakiura
11:43 – Sick kākāpō
15:19 - Are kākāpō smart?
18:19 - Previous nest cams
20:05 - Why did Rakiura dig so much in her nest?
24:00 - Do kākāpō compete with other species?
25:30 - Kākāpō on Coal Island and at Sanctuary Mountain Mangatautari
30:57 - Museum specimens and lost genes

Learn more:

• Follow the Kākāpō Files podcast to keep up to date
• Listen to the Voice of the Kākāpō series for a recap of the 2019 breeding season. Also listen to the episodes covering the interim 2022 breeding season, and about how a few male kākāpō have fared in the North Island, in the fenced Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari
• For more New Zealand science and nature find and follow the Our Changing World podcast, and subscribe to the show’s monthly newsletter

Guests:

• Kākāpō ranger, Daniella Whitaker, Kākāpō Recovery Programme
• Kākāpō technical advisor, Daryl Eason, Kākāpō Recovery Programme
• Kākāpō science advisor, Andrew Digby

References:

Kākāpō Files is made in collaboration with the Department of Conservation’s Kākāpō Recovery Programme.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details