Fungal infection setback for Kakapo

03/06/2019

After a strong start to 2019 for the Critically Endangered Kakapo, a debilitating fungus has dealt a major blow to its small population.

A healthy crop of berries was available this year on the species' favoured Rimu trees, with the breeding season producing a record 86 chicks, boosting the total population by some 50 per cent.

However, 30 Kakapos are now in hospital on the New Zealand mainland, with some fighting for their lives. Ten of the parrots have been confirmed as having the severe infection aspergillosis, caused by the fungus Aspergillus. This has already killed six individuals, while others are considered to be at high risk and are being tested for the fungus.

Deidre Vercoe, manager of the New Zealand Department of Conservation's Kakapo Recovery Team, explained: "It's a significant chunk of the population really, and it's the first time in living memory that number of birds has been on mainland New Zealand, away from their offshore islands.

"It's been quite hard with the birds that you know. Like when [a Kakapo named] Hoki died it was really difficult. She was 27 years old and she was known by so many people who worked with the programme. She was a staunch bird, she demanded your respect and everyone loved her. She was a real character."

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Mystery bird spotted at NM national refuge

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.—Wildlife managers at one of the nation's premiere bird-watching spots have a mystery on their hands.

A strange-looking bird with dark plumage showed up at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge earlier this month to join the tens of thousands of cranes and geese that spend the winter in the Rio Grande Valley.

The problem: No one knows exactly what kind of bird it is.

The debate has spread from the refuge's fields and wetlands onto Facebook, where guesses have ranged from some kind of mutant to a Thanksgiving turkey disguised as a crane for self-preservation. Birding experts from New York to California continued studying photographs of the bird Thursday, spurring even more theories.

The refuge posted a photograph of the bird on its Facebook page this week, sparking dozens of comments. Aside from the disguised turkey and oil-slicked bird theories, some suggested it could be a hybridization between a crane and an emu or a trumpeter, which are native to South America.

It could be a sandhill crane that has come down with a feather-staining fungal infection.

Or maybe he—or she—has a genetic disorder that results in too much melanin production.

"It's different. It's got to be a hybrid-cross more than likely, but what, we don't know," Refuge Manager Aaron Mize told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

Members of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Team Sapsucker—known as some of the best birders anywhere, they hold the U.S. record for finding the most bird species in 24 hours—say it's a sandhill crane.

Continued:  http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_22091159/mystery-bird-spotted-at-nm-national-refuge