The New Zealand parakeet. Its known by its Māori name of kākāriki, meaning ‘small green parrot’. There are five main species of kākāriki: Yellow-crowned parakeet, Orange-fronted parakeet, Red-crowned parakeet
Forbes’ parakeet and Antipodes Island parakeet.
Mitochondrial DNA analysis has indicated that the orange-fronted parakeet is a separate species and not just a colour variation of the yellow-crowned parakeet. The orange-fronted parakeet is highly endangered, with less than 200 individuals remaining in the North Canterbury region of the South Island.
The Huia was the largest species of New Zealand wattlebird, endemic to the North Island of New Zealand. Its extinction in the early 20th century. The two major cause of extinction was overhunting to procure Huia skins for mounted specimens and the widespread deforestation of the lowlands of the North Island by European settlers. Huia were primarily found in broadleaf-podocarp forests where there was a dense understorey, with the lost of ancient, ecologically complex primary forests, they were unable to survive in regenerating secondary forests.
Silvereye (The Māori name Tauhou) was first recorded in New Zealand in 1832 and since there is no evidence that it was artificially introduced, it is classified as a native species. They are now wide distribution throughout New Zealand.
The Rifleman or Tītipounamu is one of only two surviving species within the ancient endemic New Zealand wren family. It is New Zealand’s smallest endemic bird, with fully grown adults reaching around 8 cm, weigh around 6g to 7g.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.