 = Kakapo = 
 
 The kakapo ( Māori : kākāpō or night parrot ) , Strigops habroptilus ( Gray , 1845 ) , also called owl parrot , is a species of large , flightless , nocturnal , ground @-@ dwelling parrot of the super @-@ family Strigopoidea endemic to New Zealand . 
 It has finely blotched yellow @-@ green plumage , a distinct facial disc of sensory , vibrissa @-@ like feathers , a large grey beak , short legs , large feet , and wings and a tail of relatively short length . A combination of traits make it unique among its kind ; it is the world 's only flightless parrot , the heaviest parrot , nocturnal , herbivorous , visibly sexually dimorphic in body size , has a low basal metabolic rate and no male parental care , and is the only parrot to have a polygynous lek breeding system . It is also possibly one of the world 's longest @-@ living birds . Its anatomy typifies the tendency of bird evolution on oceanic islands , with few predators and abundant food : a generally robust physique , with accretion of thermodynamic efficiency at the expense of flight abilities , reduced wing muscles , and a diminished keel on the sternum . Like many other New Zealand bird species , the kakapo was historically important to the Māori , the indigenous people of New Zealand , appearing in many of their traditional legends and folklore . It was hunted and used as a resource by Māori , both for its meat as a food source and for its feathers , which were used to make highly valued pieces of clothing . It was also sometimes kept as a pet . 
 The kakapo is critically endangered ; as of March 2014 , with an additional six from the first hatchings since 2011 , the total known population was only 123 living individuals , as reported by the Kakapo Recovery programme , most of which have been given names . Because of Polynesian and European colonisation and the introduction of predators such as cats , rats , ferrets , and stoats , the kakapo was almost wiped out . Conservation efforts began in the 1890s , but they were not very successful until the implementation of the Kakapo Recovery plan in the 1980s . As of April 2012 , surviving kakapo are kept on three predator @-@ free islands , Codfish ( Whenua Hou ) , Anchor and Little Barrier islands , where they are closely monitored . Two large Fiordland islands , Resolution and Secretary , have been the subject of large @-@ scale ecological restoration activities to prepare self @-@ sustaining ecosystems with suitable habitat for the kakapo . The New Zealand government is willingly providing the use of these islands to kakapo conservation . A successful breeding season in 2016 saw 34 chicks fledge , taking the total population to 157 . 
 
 = = Taxonomy , systematics and naming = = 
 
 The kakapo was originally described by English ornithologist George Robert Gray in 1845 . The name " kakapo " is the English transliteration of " kākāpō " which is derived from the Māori terms kākā ( " parrot " ) + pō ( " night " ) . Its generic name is derived from the Ancient Greek strix , genitive strigos " owl " , and ops " face " , while its specific epithet comes from habros " soft " , and ptilon " feather " . It has so many unusual features that it was initially placed in its own tribe , Strigopini . Recent phylogenetic studies have confirmed the unique position of this genus as well as the closeness to the kākā and the kea , both belonging to the New Zealand parrot genus Nestor . Together , they are now considered a separate family within the parrots , Strigopidae . Within the Strigopidae , the kakapo is placed in its own tribe , Strigopini . The common ancestor of the kakapo and the genus Nestor became isolated from the remaining parrot species when New Zealand broke off from Gondwana , around 82 million years ago . Around 70 million years ago , the kakapo diverged from the genus Nestor . 
 Earlier ornithologists felt that the kakapo might be related to the ground parrots and night parrot of Australia due to their similar colouration , but this is contradicted by recent studies ; rather , the cryptic colour seems to be adaptation to terrestrial habits that evolved twice convergently . 
 
 = = Description = = 
 
 The kakapo is a large , rotund parrot ; the adult can measure from 58 to 64 cm ( 23 to 25 in ) in length , and weight can vary from 0 @.@ 95 to 4 kg ( 2 to 9 lb ) at maturity . Males are larger than females . Twenty @-@ eight males were found to average 2 kg ( 4 @.@ 4 lb ) in one study , and 39 males were found to average 2 @.@ 06 kg ( 4 @.@ 5 lb ) in another . In the same studies , 28 females were found to average 1 @.@ 5 kg ( 3 @.@ 3 lb ) and 18 females averaged 1 @.@ 28 kg ( 2 @.@ 8 lb ) . However , one source states that females will not breed until they attain a threshold weight of 1 @.@ 5 kg ( 3 @.@ 3 lb ) . They are the heaviest living species of parrot ; while the largest males attain much heavier weights than any other extant parrot , kakapos average about 400 g ( 14 oz ) more than a hyacinth macaw . The kakapo cannot fly , having short wings for its size and lacking the pronounced keel bone ( sternum ) that anchors the flight muscles of other birds . It uses its wings for balance , support , and to break its fall when leaping from trees . Unlike other land birds , the kakapo can accumulate large amounts of body fat to store energy , making it the heaviest parrot . 
 The upper parts of the kakapo have yellowish moss @-@ green feathers barred or mottled with black or dark brownish grey , blending well with native vegetation . Individuals may have strongly varying degrees of mottling and colour tone and intensity — museum specimens show that some birds had completely yellow colouring . The breast and flank are yellowish @-@ green streaked with yellow . The belly , undertail , neck and face are predominantly yellowish streaked with pale green and weakly mottled with brownish @-@ grey . Because the feathers do not need the strength and stiffness required for flight , they are exceptionally soft , giving rise to the specific epithet habroptilus . The kakapo has a conspicuous facial disc of fine feathers resembling the face of an owl ; thus , early European settlers called it the " owl parrot " . The beak is surrounded by delicate vibrissae or " whiskers " , which the bird uses to sense the ground for navigation as it walks with its head lowered . The mandible is mostly ivory @-@ coloured , with part of the upper mandible being bluish @-@ grey . The eyes are dark brown . Kakapo feet are large , scaly , and , as in all parrots , zygodactyl ( two toes face forward and two backward ) . The pronounced claws are particularly useful for climbing . The ends of the tail feathers often become worn from being continually dragged on the ground . 
 The female is easily distinguished from the male : she has a more narrow and less domed head , her beak is narrower and proportionally longer , her cere and nostrils smaller , her legs and feet more slender and pinkish grey , and her tail proportionally longer . While her plumage colour is not very different from that of the male , the toning is more subtle , with less yellow and mottling . She tends to resist more and be more aggressive than the male when handled . A nesting female also has a brood patch on the bare skin of the belly . 
 Like many parrots , the kakapo has a variety of calls . As well as the booms ( see below for a recording ) and chings of their mating calls , it will often skraark to announce its location to other birds . 
 The kakapo has a well @-@ developed sense of smell , which complements its nocturnal lifestyle . It can discriminate among odours while foraging , a behaviour reported for only one other parrot species . One of the most striking characteristics of the kakapo is its pleasant and powerful odour , which has been described as musty . Given the kakapo 's well @-@ developed sense of smell , this scent may be a social chemosignal . The smell often alerts predators to the largely defenceless kakapo . 
 
 = = = Anatomy = = = 
 
 The skeleton of the kakapo differs from other parrots in several features associated with flightlessness . Firstly , it has the smallest relative wing size of any parrot . Its wing feathers are shorter , more rounded , and less asymmetrical and have fewer distal barbules to lock the feathers together . The sternum is small and has a low , vestigial keel and a shortened spina externa . As in other flightless birds and some other flighted parrots , the furcula is not fused but consists of a pair of clavicles lying in contact with each coracoid . As in other flightless birds , the angle between the coracoid and sternum is enlarged . The kakapo has a larger pelvis than other parrots . The proximal bones of the leg and arm are disproportionately long and the distal elements are disproportionately short . 
 The pectoral musculature of the kakapo is also modified by flightlessness . The pectoralis and supracoracoideus muscles are greatly reduced . The propatagialis tendo longus has no distinct muscle belly . The sternocoracoideus is tendinous . There is an extensive cucularis capitis clavicularis muscle that is associated with the large crop . 
 
 = = Ecology and behaviour = = 
 
 It seems that the kakapo – like many of New Zealand 's bird species – has evolved to occupy an ecological niche normally filled by various species of mammal ( the only non @-@ marine mammals native to New Zealand are three species of small bats ) . Before the arrival of humans , the kakapo was distributed throughout the three main islands of New Zealand . It lived in a variety of habitats , including tussocklands , scrublands and coastal areas . It also inhabited forests , including those dominated by podocarps ( rimu , matai , kahikatea , totara ) , beeches , tawa , and rata . In Fiordland , areas of avalanche and slip debris with regenerating and heavily fruiting vegetation – such as five finger , wineberry , bush lawyer , tutu , hebes , and coprosmas – became known as " kakapo gardens " . 
 The kakapo is primarily nocturnal ; it roosts under cover in trees or on the ground during the day and moves around its territories at night . 
 Though the kakapo cannot fly , it is an excellent climber , ascending to the crowns of the tallest trees . It can also " parachute " – descending by leaping and spreading its wings . In this way it may travel a few metres ( yards ) at an angle of less than 45 degrees . 
 Having lost the ability to fly , it has developed strong legs . Movement is often by way of a rapid " jog @-@ like " gait by which it can move many kilometres . A female has been observed making two return trips each night during nesting from her nest to a food source up to 1 km ( 0 @.@ 6 mi ) away and the male may walk from its home range to a mating arena up to 5 km ( 3 mi ) away during the mating season ( October – January ) . 
 Young birds indulge in play fighting , and one bird will often lock the neck of another under its chin . The kakapo is curious by nature and has been known to interact with humans . Conservation staff and volunteers have engaged extensively with some kakapo , which have distinct personalities . 
 The kakapo was a very successful species in pre @-@ human New Zealand , and one of the reasons for this was their set of adaptations to effectively avoid predation from native birds of prey , which were their only predators in the past . However , these same behaviours have been of no use to them when faced with the mammalian predators which were introduced to New Zealand after human settlement , because these hunt in different ways . As hunters , birds behave very differently from mammals , relying on their powerful vision to find prey , and thus they usually ( with the exception of owls ) hunt by day . Apart from the two surviving New Zealand raptors , the New Zealand falcon and swamp harrier , there were two other birds of prey in pre @-@ human New Zealand : Haast 's eagle and Eyles ' harrier . All four species soared overhead searching for prey in daylight , and to avoid these avian predators , the kakapo 's ancestors adopted camouflaged plumage and became nocturnal . In addition , when the kakapo feels threatened , it freezes , so that it is more effectively camouflaged in the forest vegetation which their plumage resembles . It was not entirely safe at night , when the laughing owl was active , and it is apparent from their nest deposits on Canterbury limestone cliffs that the kakapo was among their prey . 
 Mammalian predators , in contrast to birds , rely on their sense of smell and hearing to find prey and often hunt by night . The kakapo 's adaptations to avoid avian predation have thus been useless against its new enemies – this is one of the reasons for its massive decline since the introduction of dogs , cats and mustelids – see Conservation : Human impact . A typical way for humans to hunt down the kakapo is by releasing trained dogs . 
 
 = = = Diet = = = 
 
 The beak of the kakapo is adapted for grinding food finely . For this reason , the kakapo has a very small gizzard compared to other birds of their size . It is generally herbivorous , eating native plants , seeds , fruits , pollen and even the sapwood of trees . A study in 1984 identified 25 plant species as kakapo food . It is particularly fond of the fruit of the rimu tree , and will feed on it exclusively during seasons when it is abundant . The kakapo has a distinctive habit of grabbing a leaf or frond with a foot and stripping the nutritious parts of the plant out with its beak , leaving a ball of indigestible fibre . These little clumps of plant fibres are a distinctive sign of the presence of the bird . The kakapo is believed to employ bacteria in the fore @-@ gut to ferment and help digest plant matter . 
 Kakapo diet changes according to the season . The plants eaten most frequently during the year include some species of Lycopodium ramulosum , Lycopodium fastigium , Schizaea fistulosa , Blechnum minus , Blechnum procerum , Cyathodes juniperina , Dracophyllum longifolium , Olearia colensoi and Thelymitra venosa . Individual plants of the same species are often treated differently . Kakapo leave conspicuous evidence of their feeding activities , over feeding areas that range between 10 by 10 metres ( 30 ft × 30 ft ) and 50 by 100 metres ( 160 ft × 330 ft ) per individual . Kakapo feeding grounds almost always host manuka and yellow silver pine scrubs . 
 
 = = = Reproduction = = = 
 
 The kakapo is the only species of flightless parrot in the world , and the only flightless bird that has a lek breeding system . Males loosely gather in an arena and compete with each other to attract females . Females listen to the males as they display , or " lek " . They choose a mate based on the quality of his display ; they are not pursued by the males in any overt way . No pair bond is formed ; males and females meet only to mate . 
 During the courting season , males leave their home ranges for hilltops and ridges where they establish their own mating courts . These leks can be up to 7 kilometres ( 4 mi ) from a kakapo 's usual territory and are an average of 50 metres ( 160 ft ) apart within the lek arena . Males remain in the region of their court throughout the courting season . At the start of the breeding season , males will fight to try to secure the best courts . They confront each other with raised feathers , spread wings , open beaks , raised claws and loud screeching and growling . Fighting may leave birds with injuries or even kill them . 
 Each court consists of one or more saucer @-@ shaped depressions or " bowls " dug in the ground by the male , up to 10 centimetres ( 4 in ) deep and long enough to fit the half @-@ metre length of the bird . The kakapo is one of only a handful of birds in the world which actually constructs its leks . Bowls are often created next to rock faces , banks , or tree trunks to help reflect sound - the bowls themselves function as amplifiers to enhance the projection of the males ' booming mating calls . Each male 's bowls are connected by a network of trails or tracks which may extend 50 metres ( 160 ft ) along a ridge or 20 metres ( 70 ft ) in diameter around a hilltop . Males meticulously clear their bowls and tracks of debris . One way researchers check whether bowls are visited at night is to place a few twigs in the bowl ; if the male visits overnight , he will pick them up in his beak and toss them away . 
 To attract females , males make loud , low @-@ frequency ( below 100 Hz ) booming calls from their bowls by inflating a thoracic sac . They start with low grunts , which increase in volume as the sac inflates . After a sequence of about 20 loud booms , the male kakapo emits a high @-@ frequency , metallic " ching " sound . He stands for a short while before again lowering his head , inflating his chest and starting another sequence of booms . The booms can be heard at least 1 kilometre ( 0 @.@ 62 mi ) away on a still night ; wind can carry the sound at least 5 kilometres ( 3 @.@ 1 mi ) . Males boom for an average of eight hours a night ; each male may produce thousands of booms in this time . This may continue every night for three or four months during which time the male may lose half his body weight . Each male moves around the bowls in his court so that the booms are sent out in different directions . These booms are also notorious for attracting predators , because of the long range at which they can be heard . 
 Females are attracted by the booms of the competing males ; they too may need to walk several kilometres from their territories to the arena . Once a female enters the court of one of the males , the male performs a display in which he rocks from side to side and makes clicking noises with his beak . He turns his back to the female , spreads his wings in display and walks backwards towards her . He will then attempt copulation for 2 to 14 minutes . Once the birds have mated , the female returns to her home territory to lay eggs and raise the chicks . The male continues booming in the hope of attracting another female . 
 The female kakapo lays 1 or 2 eggs ( rarely 3 ) per breeding cycle , with long intervals between laying of first and second eggs . She nests on the ground under the cover of plants or in cavities such as hollow tree trunks . The female incubates the eggs faithfully , but is forced to leave them every night in search of food . Predators are known to eat the eggs and the embryos inside can also die of cold in the mother 's absence . Kakapo eggs usually hatch within 30 days , bearing fluffy grey chicks that are quite helpless . After the eggs hatch , the female feeds the chicks for three months , and the chicks remain with the female for some months after fledging . The young chicks are just as vulnerable to predators as the eggs , and young have been killed by many of the same predators that attack adults . Chicks leave the nest at approximately 10 to 12 weeks of age . As they gain greater independence , their mothers may feed the chicks sporadically for up to 6 months . 
 Because the kakapo is long @-@ lived , with an average life expectancy of 95 years and the maximum at about 120 years , it tends to have an adolescence before it starts breeding . Males do not start to boom until about 5 years of age . It was thought that females reached sexual maturity at 9 years of age , but this idea was debunked in the 2008 breeding season when two 6 @-@ year @-@ old females named Apirama and Rakiura laid eggs . Generally females do not seek out males until they are between 9 and 11 years old . The kakapo does not breed every year and has one of the lowest rates of reproduction among birds . Breeding occurs only in years when trees mast ( fruit heavily ) , providing a plentiful food supply . Rimu mast occurs only every three to five years , so in rimu @-@ dominant forests such as those on Codfish Island , kakapo breeding occurs as infrequently . 
 Another aspect of the kakapo 's breeding system is that a female can alter the sex ratio of her offspring depending on her condition . A female who eats protein @-@ rich foods produces more male offspring ( males have 30 % – 40 % more body weight than females ) . Females produce offspring biased towards the dispersive sex when competition for resources ( such as food ) is high and towards the non @-@ dispersive sex when food is plentiful . A female kakapo will likely be able to produce eggs even when there are few resources , while a male kakapo will be more capable of perpetuating the species when there are plenty , by mating with several females . This supports the Trivers – Willard hypothesis . The relationship between clutch sex ratio and maternal diet has conservation implications , because a captive population maintained on a high quality diet will produce fewer females and therefore fewer individuals valuable to the recovery of the species . 
 
 = = Conservation = = 
 
 Fossil records indicate that in pre @-@ Polynesian times , the kakapo was New Zealand 's third most common bird and it was widespread on all three main islands . However , the kakapo population in New Zealand has declined massively since human settlement of the country . Since 1891 , conservation efforts have been made to prevent extinction . The most successful scheme has been the Kakapo Recovery Programme ; this was implemented in 1989 and continues . 
 
 = = = Human impact = = = 
 
 The first factor in the decline of the kakapo was the arrival of humans . Māori folklore suggests that the kakapo was found throughout the country when the Polynesians first arrived in Aotearoa 700 years ago . Subfossil and midden deposits show that the bird was present throughout the North Island , South Island and Stewart Island / Rakiura before and during early Māori times . Māori hunted the kakapo for food and for their skins and feathers , which were made into cloaks . They used the dried heads as ear ornaments . Due to its flightlessness , strong scent and habit of freezing when threatened , the kakapo was easy prey for the Māori and their dogs . Its eggs and chicks were also preyed upon by the Polynesian rat or kiore , which the Māori brought to New Zealand . Furthermore , the deliberate clearing of vegetation by Māori reduced the habitable range for kakapo . Although the kakapo was extinct in many parts of the islands by the time Europeans arrived , including the Tararua and Aorangi Ranges , it was still present in the central part of the North Island and forested parts of the South Island . 
 Beginning in the 1840s , European settlers cleared vast tracts of land for farming and grazing , further reducing kakapo habitat . They brought more dogs and other mammalian predators , including domestic cats , black rats and stoats . Europeans knew little of the kakapo until George Gray of the British Museum described it from a skin in 1845 . As the Māori had done , early European explorers and their dogs ate kakapo . In the late 19th century , the kakapo became well known as a scientific curiosity , and thousands were captured or killed for zoos , museums and collectors . Most captured specimens died within months . From at least the 1870s , collectors knew the kakapo population was declining ; their prime concern was to collect as many as possible before the bird became extinct . 
 In the 1880s , large numbers of mustelids ( stoats , ferrets and weasels ) were released in New Zealand to reduce rabbit numbers , but they also preyed heavily on many native species including the kakapo . Other browsing animals , such as introduced deer , competed with the kakapo for food , and caused the extinction of some of its preferred plant species . The kakapo was reportedly still present near the head of the Whanganui River as late as 1894 , with one of the last records of a kakapo in the North Island being a single bird caught in the Kaimanawa Ranges by Te Kepa Puawheawhe in 1895 . 
 
 = = = Early protection efforts = = = 
 
 In 1891 , the New Zealand government set aside Resolution Island in Fiordland as a nature reserve . In 1894 , the government appointed Richard Henry as caretaker . A keen naturalist , Henry was aware that native birds were declining , and began catching and moving kakapo and kiwi from the mainland to the predator @-@ free Resolution Island . In six years , he moved more than 200 kakapo to Resolution Island . By 1900 , however , stoats had swum to Resolution Island and colonised it ; they wiped out the nascent kakapo population within 6 years . 
 In 1903 , three kakapo were moved from Resolution Island to the nature reserve of Little Barrier Island north @-@ east of Auckland , but feral cats were present and the kakapo were never seen again . In 1912 , three kakapo were moved to another reserve , Kapiti Island , north @-@ west of Wellington . One of them survived until at least 1936 , despite the presence of feral cats for part of the intervening period . 
 By the 1920s , the kakapo was extinct in the North Island and its range and numbers in the South Island were declining . One of its last refuges was rugged Fiordland . There , during the 1930s , it was often seen or heard , and occasionally eaten , by hunters or roadworkers . By the 1940s , reports of kakapo were becoming scarce . 
 
 = = = 1950 – 89 conservation efforts = = = 
 
 In the 1950s , the New Zealand Wildlife Service was established and began making regular expeditions to search for the kakapo , mostly in Fiordland and what is now the Kahurangi National Park in the northwest of the South Island . Seven Fiordland expeditions between 1951 and 1956 found only a few recent signs . Finally , in 1958 a kakapo was caught and released in the Milford Sound catchment area in Fiordland . Six more kakapo were captured in 1961 ; one was released and the other five were transferred to the aviaries of the Mount Bruce Bird Reserve near Masterton in the North Island . Within months , four of the birds had died and the fifth died after about four years . In the next 12 years , regular expeditions found few signs of the kakapo , indicating that numbers were continuing to decline . Only one bird was captured in 1967 ; it died the following year . 
 By the early 1970s , it was uncertain whether the kakapo was still an extant species . At the end of 1974 , scientists located several more male kakapo and made the first scientific observations of kakapo booming . These observations led Don Merton to speculate for the first time that the kakapo had a lek breeding system . From 1974 to 1976 , 14 kakapo were discovered but all appeared to be males . This raised the possibility that the species would become extinct , because there might be no surviving females . One male bird was captured in the Milford area in 1975 , christened " Richard Henry " , and transferred to Maud Island . All the birds the Wildlife Service discovered from 1951 to 1976 were in U @-@ shaped glaciated valleys flanked by almost @-@ vertical cliffs and surrounded by high mountains . Such extreme terrain had slowed colonisation by browsing mammals , leaving islands of virtually unmodified native vegetation . However , even here , stoats were present and by 1976 the kakapo was gone from the valley floors and only a few males survived high on the most inaccessible parts of the cliffs . 
 Before 1977 , no expedition had been to Stewart Island / Rakiura to search for the bird . In 1977 , sightings of kakapo were reported on Stewart Island . An expedition to the island found a track and bowl system on its first day ; soon after , it located several dozen kakapo . The finding in an 8 @,@ 000 @-@ hectare area of fire @-@ modified scrubland and forest raised hope that the population would include females . The total population was estimated at 100 to 200 birds . 
 Mustelids have never colonised Stewart Island / Rakiura , but feral cats were present . During a survey , it was apparent that cats killed kakapo at a rate of 56 % per year . At this rate , the birds could not survive on the island and therefore an intensive cat control was introduced in 1982 , after which no cat @-@ killed kakapo were found . However , to ensure the survival of the remaining birds , scientists decided later that this population should be transferred to predator @-@ free islands ; this operation was carried out between 1982 and 1997 . 
 
 = = = Kakapo Recovery programme = = = 
 
 In 1989 , a Kakapo Recovery programme was developed and a Kakapo Recovery Group established to implement it . The New Zealand Department of Conservation replaced the Wildlife Service for this task . The first action of the plan was to relocate all the remaining kakapo to suitable islands for them to breed . None of the New Zealand islands were ideal to establish kakapo without rehabilitation by extensive re @-@ vegetation and the eradication of introduced mammalian predators and competitors . Four islands were finally chosen : Maud , Hauturu / Little Barrier , Codfish and Mana . Sixty @-@ five kakapo ( 43 males , 22 females ) were successfully transferred onto the four islands in five translocations . Some islands had to be rehabilitated several times when feral cats , stoats and weka kept appearing . Little Barrier Island was eventually viewed as unsuitable due to the rugged landscape , the thick forest and the continued presence of rats , and its birds were evacuated in 1998 . Along with Mana Island , it was replaced with two new kakapo sanctuaries , Chalky Island ( Te Kakahu ) and Anchor Island . The entire kakapo population of Codfish Island was temporarily relocated in 1999 to Pearl Island in Port Pegasus while rats were being eliminated from Codfish . All kakapo on Pearl and Chalky Islands were moved to Anchor Island in 2005 . 
 A key part of the Recovery Plan is the supplementary feeding of females . The kakapo breeds only once every two to five years , when a certain type of plant species , primarily Dacrydium cupressinum ( rimu ) , produces protein @-@ rich fruit and seeds . Observations of the relationship between intermittent breeding and the plant 's mast year help biologists choose which suitable supplementary foods to increase kakapo breeding frequency . In 1989 , six preferred foods ( apples , sweet potatoes , almonds , Brazil nuts , sunflower seeds and walnuts ) were supplied ad libitum each night to 12 feeding stations . Males and females ate the supplied foods , and females nested on Little Barrier Island in the summers of 1989 – 91 for the first time since 1982 , although nesting success was low . 
 Supplementary feeding not only increases kakapo breeding frequency , but also affects the sex ratio of kakapo offspring , as maternal conditions influence this ratio . ( See section " Reproduction " . ) This finding was subsequently used to increase the number of female chicks by deliberately manipulating maternal conditions . During the winter of 1981 , only females lighter than 1 @.@ 5 kg ( 3 @.@ 3 lb ) were given supplementary feeding to avoid raising their body condition , and the sex ratio results in 1982 were close to parity , eliminating the male @-@ biased sex ratios in the unrestricted feeding . 
 Though breeding can be improved by supplementary feeding , the survival of young kakapo is hampered by the presence of Polynesian rats . Of 21 chicks that hatched between 1981 and 1994 , nine were either killed by rats or died and were subsequently eaten by rats . Nest protection has been intensified since 1995 by using traps and poison stations as soon as a nest had been detected . A small video camera and infra @-@ red light source watch the nest continuously , and will scare approaching rats with flashing lights and loud popping sounds . To increase the success rate of nesting , a nest watcher places a small thermostatically controlled electric blanket over the eggs or chicks , whenever the female leaves the nest for food . The survival rate of chicks has increased from 29 % in unprotected nests to 75 % in protected ones . 
 To monitor the kakapo population continuously , each bird is equipped with a radio transmitter . Every known kakapo , barring some young chicks , has been given a name by Kakapo Recovery Programme officials . It is an affectionate way for conservation staff to refer to individual birds , and a stark reminder of how few remain . Artificial incubation of eggs and hand @-@ raising of chicks have often been used to improve the condition of the eggs and chicks . In November 2005 , the population comprised 41 females and 45 males , including four fledglings ( 3 females and 1 male ) bred in 2005 . The oldest known kakapo , " Richard Henry " , was thought to be 80 years old at the time of his death in December 2010 . 
 In 2006 , the Kakapo Recovery Programme presented a new management plan that would run from 2006 to 2016 . The key goals of this plan are to increase the female population to at least 60 by 2016 , increase genetic diversity , maintain or restore a sufficiently large habitat to accommodate the expected increase in the kakapo population , and maintain public awareness and support . 
 The Kakapo Recovery programme has been successful , with the numbers of kakapo increasing steadily . Adult survival rate and productivity have both improved significantly since the programme 's inception . However , the main goal is to establish at least one viable , self @-@ sustaining , unmanaged population of kakapo as a functional component of the ecosystem in a protected habitat . To help meet this conservation challenge , two large Fiordland islands , Resolution ( 20 @,@ 860 ha ) and Secretary ( 8 @,@ 140 ha ) , have been prepared for re @-@ introduction of the kakapo with large @-@ scale ecological restoration activities . Ultimately , the Kakapo Recovery vision for the species is to restore the " mauri " ( Maori for " life @-@ force " ) of the kakapo by breeding 150 adult females . 
 During the 2008 – 2009 summer breeding season , the total population of kakapo rose to over 100 for the first time since monitoring began , reaching 123 by February 2012 . Twenty two of the 34 chicks had to be hand @-@ reared because of a shortage of food on Codfish Island . 
 In 2012 , seven kakapo were transferred to Little Barrier Island , in an attempt to establish a successful breeding programme . Kakapo were last on the island in 1999 . 
 In March 2014 , with the kakapo population having increased to 126 , the bird 's recovery was used by Melbourne artist Sayraphim Lothian as a metaphor for the recovery of Christchurch , parallelling the " indomitable spirit of these two communities and their determination to rebuild " . 
 
 = = In Māori culture = = 
 
 The kakapo is associated with a rich tradition of Māori folklore and beliefs . The bird 's irregular breeding cycle was understood to be associated with heavy fruiting or " masting " events of particular plant species such as the Rimu which led Māori to credit the bird with the ability to tell the future . Used to substantiate this claim were reported observations of these birds dropping the berries of the Hinau and Tawa trees ( when they were in season ) into secluded pools of water to preserve them as a food supply for the summer ahead ; in legend this became the origin of the Māori practice of immersing food in water for the same purpose . 
 
 = = = Use for food and clothing = = = 
 
 The meat of kakapo made good eating and was considered by Māori to be a delicacy and it was hunted for food when it was still widespread . One source states that its flesh " resembles lamb in taste and texture " , although European settlers have described the bird as having a " strong and slightly stringent [ sic ] flavour . " 
 In breeding years , the loud booming calls of the males at their mating arenas made it easy for Māori hunting parties to track the kakapo down , and it was also hunted while feeding or when dust @-@ bathing in dry weather . The bird was caught , generally at night , using snares , pitfall traps , or by groups of domesticated Polynesian dogs which accompanied hunting parties – sometimes they would use fire sticks of various sorts to dazzle a bird in the darkness , stopping it in their tracks and making the capture easier . Cooking was done in a hāngi or in gourds of boiling oil . The flesh of the bird could be preserved in its own fat and stored in containers for later consumption – hunters of the Ngāi Tahu tribe would pack the flesh in baskets made from the inner bark of totara tree or in containers constructed from kelp . Bundles of kakapo tail feathers were attached to the sides of these containers to provide decoration and a way to identify their contents . Also taken by the Māori were the bird 's eggs , which are described as whitish " but not pure white " , and about the same size as a kererū egg . 
 As well as eating the meat of the kakapo , Māori would use kakapo skins with the feathers still attached or individually weave in kakapo feathers with flax fibre to create cloaks and capes . Each one required up to 11 @,@ 000 feathers to make . Not only were these garments considered very beautiful , they also kept the wearer very warm . They were highly valued , and the few still in existence today are considered taonga ( treasures ) — indeed , the old Māori adage " You have a kākāpō cape and you still complain of the cold " was used to describe someone who is never satisfied . Kakapo feathers were also used to decorate the heads of taiaha , but were removed before use in combat . 
 Despite this , the kakapo was also regarded as an affectionate pet by the Māori . This was corroborated by European settlers in New Zealand in the 19th century , among them George Edward Grey , who once wrote in a letter to an associate that his pet kakapo 's behaviour towards him and his friends was " more like that of a dog than a bird " . 
 
 = = = In the media = = = 
 
 The conservation of the kakapo has made the species well known . Many books and documentaries detailing the plight of the kakapo have been produced in recent years , one of the earliest being Two in the Bush , made by Gerald Durrell for the BBC in 1962 . A feature @-@ length documentary , The Unnatural History of the Kakapo won two major awards at the Reel Earth Environmental Film Festival . Two of the most significant documentaries , both made by NHNZ , are Kakapo – Night Parrot ( 1982 ) and To Save the kakapo ( 1997 ) . The BBC 's Natural History Unit also featured the kakapo , including a sequence with Sir David Attenborough in The Life of Birds . It was also one of the endangered animals Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine set out to find for the radio series and book Last Chance to See . An updated version of the series has been produced for BBC TV , in which Stephen Fry and Carwardine revisit the animals to see how they are getting on almost 20 years later , and in January 2009 , they spent time filming the kakapo on Codfish Island . Footage of a kakapo named Sirocco attempting to mate with Carwardine 's head was viewed by millions worldwide , leading to Sirocco becoming " spokes @-@ bird " for New Zealand wildlife conservation in 2010 , as part of the International Year of Biodiversity . The kakapo was featured in the episode " Strange Islands " of the documentary series South Pacific , originally aired on 13 June 2009 . Kakapo were also used as an example of unique island fauna in the episode " Worlds Apart " of the series The Living Planet . 
 
 