KAKAPO (Unique parrot of New Zealand)

KAKAPO

(Unique parrot of New Zealand)

Kakapo is a unique bird, in which it is also named as owl parrot. Basically the parrot is from New Zealand. This is a flightless Nocturnal bird. Kakapo is the world's rarest, strangest and heaviest parrot which is ancient too.

Appearance:

It has finely blotched yellow-green plumage, a large grey beak, petite legs, large feet, tail & wings are in short length and vibrissa feathers. It is the heaviest parrot [weighing up to 3.5 kilograms (8 lbs)] nocturnal, herbivorous, visibly sexually dimorphic in body size, and the male Kakapo is the only parrot to have inflatable thoracic sacs. A certain combination of traits makes it unique among other birds.

Unique Characteristics:

It is a parrot that looks like an owl, hops like a sparrow, growls like a dog and has a very different smell.

Life Span:

They have been known to live to the ripe old age of 60 years, its life span is longest than any other bird.

Flightless Bird:

They really cannot fly, Kakapo are very good climbers and Wings are used for flying and for slowing themselves down when leaping from trees. Kakapo is an excellent hiker and climber. A bird can range several kilometers in one night.

Smell of the Bird:

It will reveal a mildewed Kakapo smell. The smell is so strong and distinctive, once if we adjusted to the smell, we can be captivated by the un-birdlike behavior of the Kakapo.

Behavior:

Its waddling step, it's curiosity, wide range of calls, and it's comic antics meant that in historic times, the Kakapo was occasionally kept as a pet by early settlers of New Zealand.

Kakapo will have its soft downy feel. It adapts to its environment with its feather and providing camouflage. It doesn’t have defending capability

Diet:

Herbivores bird, feeding mostly on fruits, seeds, leaves, stems and it also includes almonds, walnuts, apples and special muesli. However, the favorite fruit is that of the Rimu tree.

Propagation:

Male travels up to five kilometers during the season, where it starts in the month of December. Kakapo take to prominent ridges, rocks or hilltops with low-growing vegetation to begin a courtship competition for female attention. This is known as 'lek' breeding and it is unusual.

The male Kakapo can swell up like a porcupine fish and emit a low 'sonic' boom that travels up to five kilometres in the breeding season!

The female Kakapo will travel several kilometres to visit the males and mate. But, after mating, the females are left to tend the nest by themselves - the males just keep booming and chinging in the hope of finding another mate!

Young one:

The female Kakapo lays between one and four eggs, which hatch after about 30 days. As a solo mum, the female has to leave the nest at night in search of food, leaving the eggs or chicks exposed to the threat of predation. The chicks will typically fledge, or leave the nest, after about 10-12 weeks. However, the mother may keep feeding the chicks for up to six months.

Endangered Species:

The Kakapo (night parrot) is one of New Zealand's unique ‘treasures' and with only 86 known surviving birds it is listed internationally as a critically endangered species.