An incurable, infectious and potentially fatal virus is threatening New Zealand's endangered parrot population.
Scientists from Canterbury and Massey universities are concerned a new strain of beak and feather virus, carried by the Australian eastern rosella, will spread to kakapo and red-fronted parrot populations, The Dominion Post reported.
"The real question is not is it [the virus] present or not; the real question is how long before it hits them," ecologist Luis Ortiz-Catedral said.
Mr Ortiz-Catedral said he found about 25 percent of the red-fronted parakeets on Little Barrier Island near Auckland were infected with beak and feather virus, causing deformed beaks and feather loss in its carriers.
In some cases, the virus killed birds it infected.
Scientists were particularly concerned of the virus - for which there is no cure -- could spread to New Zealand's 123 living kakapo. All of the kakapo would be tested for the virus in the coming months.
