Had to get up early for this event. Drove to the ARC before the birds had even thought of waking up. Out to The Cascades in the Waitakeres. Everybody else seemed to be there. Two hundred at least....
The kids were there to give two Kokako their favorite food. Sweet water and squidged up banana it seems. Mike Lee and Sandra Coney were allowed a go too...
But here's one of the stars - and the woman from DOC. Talk about commitment. These birds came from a long way south. She gave us clear instructions. In case the birds ran across the forest floor toward us....
She set them free running up a branch. They skipped their way into the forest canopy. Fantastic experience. The funny thing was the forest was alive with the sound of Kokako even before they were release. Found out the forest had a few Ipods strategically planted in trees - all periodically emitting Kokako calls of the right dialect. Anchoring calls. Keep the birds local.Very interesting.
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