Listen
The first chick of the 2019 kākāpō breeding season hatched on the 30th of January. Its mum is Waikawa and its father is probably Horton. Photo: Daryl Eason / DOC
It is looking set to be a bumper year for the endangered kākāpō . There are just 147 of the giant flightless parrots, and while there hasn't been any breeding since 2016, two new chicks have already arrived and the Department of Conservation is hoping this summer will be one for the record books. Our resident kākāpō expert and host of RNZ's podcast the Kākāpō Files, Alison Ballance, has the latest.