Kākāpō Numbers Hit 325 After a Record Breeding Season
One of the world's rarest birds has reached a happy milestone. New Zealand's Department of Conservation (DOC) announced on 1 September that the official population of the kākāpō, a critically endangered parrot, has climbed to 325 birds. It is the highest number of the recovery era.
The jump came from 90 chicks that hatched in the 2026 breeding season. They were added to the official count once the youngest surviving chick turned 150 days old. At that age, young kākāpō have fledged and are seen as independent enough to join the tally.
DOC's Kākāpō Recovery Operations Manager Deidre Vercoe called 90 chicks in a single season a record. In the early years of recovery, it took 16 years to produce that many chicks. She added that the population may last have been above 300 birds as long as 75 years ago.
The comeback has been long and careful. The programme began in 1995 with just 51 birds, including only 20 females. Since then, the species has been through 13 breeding seasons. Low genetic diversity has made breeding hard, with problems such as infertility and poor hatching success.
This season, the team also tested a lighter touch, with fewer egg and chick checks thanks to remote nest technology, and less extra feeding. Tāne Davis of Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu said the goal is to learn where close support is still needed and where breeding can become more natural.
Most of this year's chicks will get their names on their hatch anniversaries next February and March. A few will stay unnamed, a first in modern recovery history and a sign of a more natural future. DOC's modelling suggests the next breeding season could come as soon as 2028.
