Doing our utmost for the kākā

By taking action based on a long-term plan, our gardens can be part of a welcoming urban forest mosiac for kākā to return to Dunedin, writes Maureen Howard.

Last August I was thrilled to see a wild kākā flying over Truby King Reserve at Seacliff. My observation was one of an increasing number of recent kākā sightings around Dunedin and its surrounds that staff at Orokonui Ecosanctuary say reflects the "definitely growing" kākā population within Orokonui Ecosanctuary.

Once common, kākā around Dunedin became locally extinct around 150 years ago, following forest clearance and the introduction of mammalian predators. Now, thanks to ecosanctuaries and predator-free initiatives, birds like kākā are returning.

"The example of Wellington shows that ecosanctuaries can be the source for the re-establishment of kākā in a region as long as predation is closely controlled and the habitat is suitable," says Associate Prof Michael Knapp, of the department of biological anthropology at the University of Otago.

"We can all help to make Dunedin a welcoming place for the return of the kākā," says Knapp, who points to guidelines recently posted on the Orokonui Ecosanctuary Facebook page.

"Predators are a massive, massive issue for kākā," says Orokonui Ecosanctuary’s communications and advocacy lead, Taylor Davies-Colley. Wild kākā rear their chicks in the large cavities of big trees — taking around three months — which makes mother and chicks easy prey for visiting rats, cats, possums and stoats, he says. You might get an adult female who can live for 40 years and produce chicks every year, getting eaten, he says.

"That’s a huge impact on your population that you have."

Trapping efforts by the Halo Project north of the city are helping kākā rewild beyond the ecosanctuary. We can do our bit by setting traps in our gardens or getting involved in a trapping group. Also, don’t underestimate the predatory prowess of your pets. Juvenile kākā often feed on the ground, says Davies-Colley, who recommends responsible pet ownership. This could mean bringing pets indoors when kākā are about, investing in an enclosed outdoor space for your cat or rearing your next kitten with an indoor lifestyle.

Although providing nesting habitat for a large cavity-nesting parrot is beyond the scope of most urban gardens, if you have a large native or exotic tree on your property, that’s worth protecting. Some day, perhaps long after you are gone, it may become a home for kākā chicks.

If you don’t have space for a large tree, you could grow food plants for kākā like harakeke and kōwhai.

"You don’t have to be the garden that has the huge totara," Davies-Colley says.

Davies-Colley recommends people don’t feed kākā artificially. He’s not just thinking of the birds’ welfare.

Kākā may rip up your house if you feed them, he says, and maybe your neighbours’, too. This happens when they come to see your home as a source of where to find food.

"If we feed kākā outside our houses, they will treat our houses the same way kea treat our cars".

Artificial feeding can also easily spread disease to kākā, be nutritionally lacking, and food such as nuts can cause deformities in chicks.

"Kākā are more than capable of finding enough food in most areas around Dunedin" says Davies-Colley.

At Orokonui Ecosanctuary, a 1000-year plan is in place to create a thriving ecosystem that reflects the length of time nature needs to grow big trees, allow very slow breeding populations like tuatara to repopulate the sanctuary and establish healthy bird populations beyond the fence.

"But also, it gives us time to think things over in the appropriate way,’’ Davies-Colley says.

"We can know that because we aren’t trying to rush — wherever we leave it, the work we’ve done will be a good place for the next person to take over."

I’m looking forward to spotting a kākā in my garden someday. We’re off to a good start.

 - Dr Maureen Howard is the creator and host of the podcast series Rewilding in Action, with Otago Access Radio.