Conservation project sees threatened birds return

13:28, Dec 14 2018

A tourism company's efforts to put conservation at the heart of their operations appears to be bearing fruit as native birds flock back to Rotorua's Dansey Road Scenic Reserve.

Forest zipline company Canopy Tours has just finalised its bi-annual monitoring and trap resetting and found little evidence of dead predators across their 515 traps. 

The intensive pest control programme has been running for five years and Canopy Tours conservation lead Scott Davis said it was inspiring to see native birds return.

"It's really exciting to see different species coming back and a greater number of all species in the reserve. The tangible impact of five years of conservation blitzes is a win for all Kiwis," Davis said.

Recent new arrivals to flock back to the reserve are more sightings of Kārearea (New Zealand Falcon), our nation's only threatened bird of prey with only 3000-5000 breeding pairs left in existence, along with two species of cuckoo - Pīpīwharauroa (Green Shining Cuckoo) and the Koekoeā (Long Tail Cuckoo).

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Kiwi bird hatched after 78 days of incubation

The first week of spring has brought the first kiwi chick of the season.

Tuatahi, meaning first in Maori, hatched at Kiwi Encounter at Rainbow Springs in Rotorua, on Thursday.

Dad Para sat on the egg for 59 days in the Maungataniwha Forest in Hawkes Bay before the egg was lifted and delivered to the centre, where the team incubated it through to hatch, Kiwi Encounter husbandry manager Claire Travers said.

"After 78 days of incubation the chick was so keen to hatch that he/she kicked its hocks out of the rear end of the shell.

"Unlike other birds, kiwi chicks don't have an egg tooth to chip their way out of the egg, instead they rely on pushing their way out with their strong leg and neck muscles. So this chick needed a bit of assistance to hatch."

One of the keepers taped a pad over the hocks for the chick to push against, and after a few more pushes it hatched, weighing a healthy 375g, Ms Travers said.

There were 11 eggs in incubation at the centre that came from across the North Island, with more due over the next few days.

One of the eggs already in incubation was close to hatching, with the rest a week or so away from emerging, she said.

Source ..

New Zealand's smallest kiwi bird egg will hatch in the next couple of weeks at Rotorua's Rainbow Springs.

25 January 2014 

Kiwi bird breeders are eagerly awaiting the hatching of what is believed to be New Zealand's smallest egg.

The egg, dubbed Mini, weighed just 217 grams when it arrived at Rotorua's Rainbow Springs Kiwi Wildlife Park - compared to the 442.1 grams its sibling weighed at the same time.

It is expected to hatch in about two weeks and staff are hoping its small size won't result in health problems.

Rainbow Springs says its next smallest egg was the prenatal home of McMurdo, who was born in 2012 and weighed 238.5 grams.

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Call for protection of local birds under threat

Department of Conservation community relations ranger Rob Griffiths is encouraging Rotorua people to do their bit for the city's most threatened bird species.

He said Rotorua people were good at taking part in conservation efforts that related to recreational activities, but tended to overlook other parts of the environment that were just as important.

"The general Rotorua public don't have much awareness of what goes on around with native bird protection and recovery work. There are a number of places around locally. Rainbow Springs does a variety of bird awareness, Kiwi Encounter with kiwi recovery/operation nest egg, Wingspan with native birds of prey, Kaharoa and Rotoehu have groups looking after the kokako, Mokoia Island is a pest-free island/wildlife refuge and there are dabchicks around the lakes."

Read on:  http://www.rotoruadailypost.co.nz/news/call-for-protection-of-local-birds-under-threat/1545943/