6 Feb,
2019 5:30am
Four rare
shore birds endemic to New Zealand were released yesterday on pest-free
Motutapu Island in the Hauraki Gulf after a successful breeding programme
produced an abundance of chicks. The juvenile shore plover or tuturuatu are one
of the world's rarest shore birds, with just 250 remaining. A small, curious
animal, the shore plover nests on the ground and is easily disturbed, which
makes them vulnerable in the wild.
The
Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre near Masterton and the Isaac Conservation and
Wildlife Trust outside Christchurch have had a bumper year breeding plover
chicks. Pūkaha ranger Mireille Hicks said between them they had raised 46
chicks. Hicks said the 30-year-old recovery programme hoped to lift the bird's
survival chances.
"Many
people do not know about how critical the situation is which ... we'd like to
change".
The
plover captive breeding programme uses five pest-free islands. Since the first
release on Motutapu the little birds have been seen in the wider Auckland area,
raising hopes for the plover's prospects.
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