2. 'Extinct' South Island kokako
could still be alive
A native New Zealand bird previously
declared extinct could still be alive after a
sighting was confirmed near Reefton.
The kōkako is an endangered forest bird
which is endemic to New Zealand. It is slate-
grey with wattles and a black mask.
3. Our kōkako is part of the very, very old wattlebird family. A wattle is
a coloured flap of skin that hangs beneath the beak. The kōkako's
cousins, the extinct huia and the saddleback also have wattles.
Theirs are red-brown, while our kokako has bright blue ones.
Kōkako are forest birds and used to live throughout New Zealand .
Now they are very, very rare. There are two reasons for this:
A lot of their forest has been cut down to make farmland.
kōkako are easy prey for pests. They can't fly very well. They prefer
to run up tree trunks and along branches and then glide to
another tree.
Their main enemies are stoats, rats and possums. These animals
hunt at night, raiding nest and eating eggs, chicks and even the
mother bird sitting on the nest.
4. There are 2 types of kokako there is the
north island one ( on the left ) and the south
island one ( on the right ).
