Uploaded December 2020 | Updated September 2026, 8 minutes ago
We’re helping to safeguard the future of takahē in Aotearoa!
Bird keepers Devon and Chris recently set out for Motutapu Island for a three day stay to perform health checks, vaccinations, and transmitter changes on this taonga species. Auckland Zoo staff carry out this important mahi on behalf of Department of Conservation's Takahē Recovery Programme for all of their northern sanctuary sites.
This incredible ground-dwelling bird was thought to be extinct for fifty years until they were famously rediscovered in 1948 and now 450 individual birds survive today. These sanctuary sites currently produce half the chicks in the breeding programme, and ultimately the goal is to establish self-sustaining wild populations in their former South Island habitats.
Using their unique skill sets honed from years of caring for birds at the zoo, our bird keepers are able to transfer these skills to help New Zealand’s species that are vulnerable in the wild – something they’re more than willing to get involved in.
We’re helping to safeguard the future of takahē in Aotearoa!
Bird keepers Devon and Chris recently set out for Motutapu Island for a three day stay to perform health checks, vaccinations, and transmitter changes on this taonga species. Auckland Zoo staff carry out this important mahi on behalf of Department of Conservation's Takahē Recovery Programme for all of their northern sanctuary sites.
This incredible ground-dwelling bird was thought to be extinct for fifty years until they were famously rediscovered in 1948 and now 450 individual birds survive today. These sanctuary sites currently produce half the chicks in the breeding programme, and ultimately the goal is to establish self-sustaining wild populations in their former South Island habitats.
Using their unique skill sets honed from years of caring for birds at the zoo, our bird keepers are able to transfer these skills to help New Zealand’s species that are vulnerable in the wild – something they’re more than willing to get involved in.
