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Post by Melly on Mar 3, 2005 2:03:22 GMT
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Post by Melanie on Jul 8, 2008 14:00:08 GMT
A takahe has been shot on Mana Island by a Conservation Department worker who mistook the rare native bird for a pukeko.
DOC Kapiti area manager Ian Cooksley said it was a "regrettable incident" but an investigation into the shooting found it was clearly a case of mistaken identity.
He said the man, armed with a .22 rifle, was positioned 40 metres away picking off a group of pukeko in mid-June.
But in the poor late-afternoon light he accidentally shot one of the island's 39 takahe, which had similar colourings to the intended targets.
"The man responsible was devastated; saving endangered species was part of his job. The intent to harm wasn't there so we don't need to punish him. He's got enough of that on his own."
The male takahe had not taken a mate so this year's breeding numbers were not expected to be affected, Mr Cooksley said.
Takahe are a highly endangered species - they were thought to be extinct till their rediscovery in Fiordland's Murchison Mountains in 1948.
Since then a breeding programme in Te Anau and reintroduction to Mana Island off the coast of Porirua have increased their numbers to about 225. Though the birds breed well, many chicks do not survive through winter.
Pukeko numbers on Mana Island have swelled from one in 1991 to about 600.
They need to be culled because they uproot native saplings and prey on the chicks of the endangered shore plover and brown teal.
Mr Cooksley said the culling operation would be tightened up, with restrictions on shooting in low light, and possibly using shotguns instead of rifles or only firing at pukeko in flight.
"This kind of thing hasn't happened before and won't happen again as far as I'm concerned.
"It's tragic for us but there have been much worse ... like people getting shot."
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Post by Melanie on Nov 20, 2009 11:35:46 GMT
Critically endangered Takahe numbers crash – But some good news 17/11/2009 09:48:45 DOC Takahe Recovery ranger Ross Curtis (R) and Te Anau Mitre 10 manager Paul Evans (L). Photo: Jonathan Larrivee Fiordland Helicopters. Largest takahe release into the Murchison Mountains November 2009. Sixteen juvenile takahe have been released into an extensively trapped area in the Murchison Mountains, Fiordland National Park. This is the largest release of juvenile birds into the Murchison Mountains. The birds, raised at the Burwood Bush Rearing Unit near Te Anau, are the first to be introduced into the mountains following the establishment of the extended trapping programme in 2008. 60,000 acres of stoat control At nearly 60,000 hectares it's the country's largest stoat control programme, covering the entire area of the Murchison Mountains Special Takahe Area - home to the critically endangered takahe. Kiwi & Blue duck benefit Department of Conservation (DOC) takahe recovery ranger Glen Greaves said not only are takahe benefiting from the increased protection provided by the 1630 traps but so are other species vulnerable to stoat predation like kiwi and the whio/blue duck. Mr Greaves said a monitoring survey highlighted how effective stoat control is in the mountains. "During last season's stoat plague the number of takahe outside the trapped area dropped 60 percent compared to a four percent decline within the trapped area." He said the extended trapped area will also have a positive impact on the takahe breeding season. While it was going to be a late breeding season due to the cold spring weather the volume of food available in the Murchison Mountains was encouraging. Good breeding season predicted "There were a lot of single birds in the population following the 2007/08 decline. Most now appear to have found a new mate, and the habitat is in pristine condition due to intensive deer control, so it looks like it will be a really good breeding season." Takahe numbers fell 35% in 2008 - Just 230 birds left alive New Zealand's total takahe population nearly hit 300 in 2008, but soaring stoat numbers in the Murchison Mountains saw that number fall to about 230. It is estimated that there are about 100 birds in the mountains with the remainder on five pest free islands. takahe facts Five of the birds released came from offshore islands, the other 11 came from the Burwood Bush Rearing Unit. The juvenile birds will pair up and begin nesting in two to three years. The rearing facilities at Burwood were recently modernised and extended with sponsorship funds received by Mitre 10 - making the rearing of 16 juveniles, possible. It is estimated there are only 230 takahe in existence The takahe is a flightless bird. It was once thought to be extinct until 1948 when a few pairs were found in the Murchison Mountains, Fiordland National Park. Stoats kill adult takahe as well as eating chicks and eggs. As the takahe population increases so does the chances of seeing birds outside the Murchison Mountains Special Takahe Area. Stoat control, initially covering about a third of the Murchison Mountains Special Takahe Area, was set up in 2002 to test its effectiveness. More information about this special bird can be found on the Department of Conservation website. Takahe information The Mitre 10 Takahe Rescue sponsorship has been running for nearly five years. Destruction of habitat by deer and predation by stoats are two of the greatest threats to takahe. www.wildlifeextra.com/go/news/murchison-takahe.html |
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Post by surroundx on Dec 8, 2012 5:57:55 GMT
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Post by Melanie on Dec 8, 2012 12:05:03 GMT
There is already a Takahe thread in the endangered category. And the rediscovery was already in 1948.
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Post by surroundx on Dec 8, 2012 14:23:35 GMT
I looked in the rediscovered birds forum and didn't see it so I thought that I would start a new one. Does it matter when the species was rediscovered? I though all rediscovered species would go in the rediscovered species board regardless of the date of their rediscovery?
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Dec 8, 2012 15:39:55 GMT
Does it matter when the species was rediscovered? I though all rediscovered species would go in the rediscovered species board regardless of the date of their rediscovery? No, that doesn't really matter, but this rediscovery took place long before most of us, here in the forum, were born.  |
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Post by Melanie on Dec 8, 2012 16:42:03 GMT
The question where should we drawn the line? There were species which were rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century (some even in the late 19th century). Should we put all this species into the rediscovered category?
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Post by Melanie on Nov 22, 2014 0:58:49 GMT
Rare in the wild, takahe are also seldom seen in museum collections, writes Ellen Sima. The story of the South Island takahe is one of conservation and survival. Once thought extinct, the takahe was rediscovered in 1948 by Invercargill doctor Geoffrey Orbell in Fiordland's remote Murchison Mountains. In the decades before Orbell's discovery, Otago Museum was home to two specimens of this enigmatic bird. At the time, these specimens were considered some of the last surviving in the world. Currently on display in Otago Museum's Gifts and Legacies exhibition is a near-complete takahe skeleton. It was collected in 1884 by Richard Henry, one of New Zealand's earliest conservation rangers. An Irishman, Henry first found work in New Zealand as a rabbiter, and later became a guide and explorer at Te Anau. Keenly interested in native birds, he studied the decline of species such as kakapo, whio and kiwi. He undertook a historic relocation of more than 500 flightless birds to Resolution Island reserve after being made its first caretaker in 1891. Henry found the takahe bones scattered in a small patch of scrub near Lake Te Anau and painstakingly collected them to donate to the museum. The skeleton has been delicately arranged underneath a glass bell jar and was the most complete takahe specimen in the museum's collection until 1898, when a Te Anau dog made a ground-breaking find. On the shore of Lake Te Anau, musterer Jack Ross took his dog, called Rough, for a walk. Rough disappeared into the scrub and returned with a young female takahe in its mouth. Despite Ross' best efforts to revive it, the bird died. He quickly organised its delivery to Otago Museum curator Prof William Benham, who taxidermied the takahe skin to make a mounted specimen. Before the takahe was rediscovered in 1948, there were just four mounted specimens in the world: two in the British Museum, another in Dresden and a fourth - the only specimen to remain in New Zealand - in Otago Museum. The takahe caught by Rough, now on permanent display in the Nature Galleries, was the last specimen collected. For many years it was the only takahe mount on display anywhere in the world. Today, there are roughly 200 takahe living in Fiordland, under constant pressure from pest predator species and habitat loss. The takahe specimens in the Otago Museum collection are a tangible reminder of why we need to conserve our living species, and their fate if we do not. -Ellen Sima is natural science collection officer at Otago Museum. www.odt.co.nz/lifestyle/magazine/322544/rare-all-its-forms |
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Post by surroundx on Aug 23, 2015 1:16:03 GMT
New Zealand Halts Culling Operation After Accidental Shooting Of Critically Endangered TakaheNew Zealand’s Department of Conservation announced Friday that it has stopped a bird-culling operation after hunters mistakenly killed four critically endangered Takahe birds on Motutapu Island. The four flightless birds -- native to New Zealand -- were found on Aug. 17 by conservation staff. “DOC [Department of Conservation] has put a halt to any future operations to cull pukeko near takahe populations while it conducts its investigation and a review of procedures for such operations,” DOC’s Northern Conservation Services Director Andrew Baucke said, in a statement released Friday. “DOC is currently talking to the deerstalkers involved in the culling operation and the association is cooperating fully with the inquiries.” The incident occurred when members of New Zealand’s Deerstalkers’ Association were permitted to cull up to 600 pukeko birds -- a highly aggressive bird that is said to pose a serious threat to other native species. Although the pukeko is half the size of the flightless takahe, both species have a similar blue-colored coat of feathers and red beaks. However, Baucke added, the hunters were carefully briefed on how to tell the difference between the two, and were also instructed to only shoot the birds on the wing. “Guidelines introduced after an incident on Mana Island seven years ago when another takahe was mistakenly shot during a pukeko cull were also used during last week’s cull,” Baucke said, in the statement. “The deaths are deeply disappointing for DOC and the many groups, like the deerstalkers themselves.” The takahe was once thought to be extinct, but was rediscovered in 1948. However, despite conservation efforts, the species remains critically endangered, with its current population standing at a mere 300, including about 80 living in the wild. “I share with the department a concern that the deaths will affect efforts to save an endangered species,” Bill O’Leary, president of the Deerstalkers’ Association said, in a statement released Friday. “I apologize to the department and to the country at large.” Source: www.ibtimes.com/new-zealand-halts-culling-operation-after-accidental-shooting-critically-endangered-2062966
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Post by Melanie on Dec 1, 2015 23:10:46 GMT
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Post by surroundx on Aug 17, 2016 10:25:14 GMT
Lettink, Marieke, Jamieson, Ian G., Millar, Craig D. and Lambert, David M. (2003). Mating system and genetic variation in the endangered New Zealand takahe. Conservation Genetics 3(4): 427-434. [ Abstract] |
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Post by surroundx on Nov 14, 2016 12:25:26 GMT
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Post by alexanderlang on Dec 16, 2016 20:45:34 GMT
Hi! This may be of interest.:  |
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Post by surroundx on Oct 22, 2017 9:03:05 GMT
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Post by surroundx on Nov 8, 2017 12:24:55 GMT
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Post by surroundx on Nov 11, 2017 1:37:18 GMT
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Post by surroundx on Nov 14, 2017 11:53:09 GMT
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Post by surroundx on Nov 14, 2017 11:58:16 GMT
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Post by surroundx on Nov 14, 2017 12:13:08 GMT
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