World's fattest parrot has record breeding season, but...

Photo: Don Merton / AFP / Getty Images

Kakapo is still critically endangered 

The Guardian newspaper reports that the world's fattest species of parrot has had a record-breaking breeding season in New Zealand.   Which is good because there are only 147 adult Kakapo alive today.   A far cry from when they were one of New Zealand's most common birds.  The culprits?  Hunting to the brink of extinction, killing by introduced pests and being displaced by farming.   The birds are vulnerably flightless, nocturnal, known for their charismatic charm and owl-like faces.  They are subject to one of the world's most intensive management programs and this year 76 chicks have hatched and 60 are expected to reach adulthood. 49 out of 50 breeding females laid eggs this year.   In the last two seasons, fruit has not been so plentiful in 50 years.  Feeding and breeding has started early and some Kakapo are nesting twice.   The chicks are being raised on two predator-free islands off the New Zealand coast.  The population would have to reach "at least 500" for scientists to think about backing off.   They were thought to be extinct until some were found in the 1970s.   They had reached their lowest number in 1977 at 18 birds.
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