Kahurangi National Park takahē numbers have been boosted by the arrival of 15 takahē from the Burwood Takehe Centre at Te Anau.

The flightless Southland birds travelled by car from Te Anau, then flew from Invercargill to Nelson with Air New Zealand.

They then had a helicopter ride into the Kahurangi Park’s Gouland Downs area, where they were released from their boxes on Wednesday (March 17).

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Department of Conservation communications adviser Trish Fraser, of Nelson, said it was a long day’s travel for the birds, who began their journey early in the morning and changed planes at Christchurch.

The takahē in Kahurangi National Park are the first to live wild outside of the takahē homeland in Fiordland’s Murchison Mountains in more than a century. 

The Department of Conservation first released takahē in the park in March 2018 in a milestone step towards the Takahē Recovery Programme’s goal of establishing new wild populations within their former range. 

DOC, Ngāi Tahu and the Takahē Recovery Programme partner Fulton Hogan released another 29 takahē in the Murchison Mountains in Fiordland last month. 

The takahē territory in the Murchison Mountains area is becoming full and DOC is actively looking for new wild sites for takahē with suitable habitat and the low predator numbers needed for populations to successfully establish. 

Trish Fraser said DOC was monitoring and learning from the Kahurangi population and how not yet identified other sites where takahe could be relocated.

The takahe had a chopper ride into the Kahurangi National Park on Wednesday. PHOTO: Jason Van de Wetering/DOC.

2020 was a tough year for Kahurangi takahe

Until last year, the Kahurangi population of takehe population stood at 32, after DOC released 30 takahē there in 2018 and two takahē were hatched and raised there. 

In the first two years only one of the released takahē died, from natural causes. 

Then last year the population had a significant setback with 11 of the takahē dying, some also due to natural causes.

DOC’s Takahē Recovery Programme Operations Manager Deidre Vercoe said 2020 was a tough year for the Kahurangi takahē and it was disappointing to lose 11 birds.

“[Wednesday’s] takahē release increases the Gouland Downs takahē population to around 34 birds, enabling us to better evaluate the suitability of the area for sustaining a takahē population.

“The takahē that died from natural causes had low body weights, suggesting they weren’t getting enough food during winter. They were older birds that may have struggled to adapt to a new environment. The 15 birds we’ve continued to monitor are younger and were a healthy weight when checked in September. 

“The 15 takahē joining the population are between one and two years old and, being younger, may adjust more readily to the new wild home.

“It’s challenging establishing new wild populations of a native species but ultimately the conservation goal is to return them to living naturally in the wild.

What we learn from monitoring the wild takahē informs our selection of other sites for takahē and how we establish and manage wild populations.”

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The Takahē Recovery Team is continuing research into measures to reduce 1080 risk to takahe.

Three of the Kahurangi takahē deaths were due to 1080 following an aerial predator control operation. 

No rats or stoats were detected in monitoring following the operation. This has helped protect threatened species, including great spotted kiwi/roroa, kea and whio, at risk from increased rat and stoat numbers due to heavy beech seeding. Further aerial predator control is not expected to be needed in the area for several years.

Trish Grant said it was the first time takahe had been exposed to 1080 and DOC had not known how susceptible they would be.

Air New Zealand has now assisted DOC with transporting around 4,000 threatened species and conservation dogs since 2012.

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Background information 

• DOC’s Takahē Recovery Programme with Ngāi Tahu and national partner Fulton Hogan has developed a successful blueprint for securing takahē from extinction. Takahē numbers have been growing by around 10% a year since 2015 to now number nearly 450. More than half are across 18 sanctuary sites and with them safe and productive, takahē recovery can now push towards the goal of multiple self-sustaining wild populations.

• Fulton Hogan joined DOC as a national partner to the Takahē Recovery Programme in July 2016. Its support has enabled the recovery programme to grow its work.

• The New Zealand Nature Fund has a long-standing association with the programme and joined the DOC and Fulton Hogan partnership in July 2016, providing administration and advocacy support.

• The Murchison Mountains takahē area has an extensive trapping network but its population loses an average of 15% of adults from predation when stoat numbers rise following beech and tussock seeding. Chick and juvenile deaths are likely to be even higher. This suggests trapping alone does not sufficiently protect takahē in beech forest and tussock environments.