South Island kōkako
| South Island kōkako | |
|---|---|
 | |
| North Island Kōkako (front) and South Island Kōkako (rear) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Subclass: | Neornithes |
| Infraclass: | Neognathae |
| Superorder: | Neoaves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Suborder: | Passeri |
| Infraorder: | Passerida |
| Family: | Callaeidae |
| Genus: | Callaeas |
| Species: | C. cinereus |
| Binomial name | |
| Callaeas cinereus (Gmelin, 1788) | |
| Synonyms | |
|
C. cinereus cinereus | |
The South Island kōkako (Callaeas cinereus) is a forest bird which is endemic to the South Island of New Zealand. It is grey in colour, with a small black mask. It had largely orange wattles, with only a small patch of blue at the base. The kōkako was first described by German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in 1788. Its species name is the Latin adjective cinereus "grey".
Threats and conservation
In the early 1900s the South Island kōkako was widespread in the South Island and Stewart Island. It has fared worse than the North Island kōkako and was formally declared extinct by the New Zealand Department of Conservation on 16 January 2007.[1] However, in November 2013 the Ornithological Society of New Zealand changed its classification from extinct to "data deficient", after they accepted as genuine a reported sighting near Reefton in 2007.[2] The last accepted sighting before this was in 1967.[3] Unconfirmed sightings have also occasionally been reported.[4][5][6]
In the 1990s, Timberlands, the state owned enterprise tasked with managing the former New Zealand Forest Service's west coast forests found some evidence of kōkako in the research into native forest ecology it conducted as part of its sustainable management program.[7]
References
- ↑ Atkinson, Kent (16 January 2007). "DoC declares South Island kokako 'extinct'". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
- ↑ Downes, Siobhan (27 November 2013). "Extinct kokako may be alive". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
- ↑ Morton, Jamie (27 November 2013). "'Extinct' South Island kokako could still be alive". New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 4 February 2014.
- ↑ Grey Ghost website for South Island kokako sightings: http://www.greyghost.org.nz/
- ↑ Fresh signs of long-lost kokako in Fiordland - 29 Mar 2006 - NZ Herald
- ↑ Angela Gregory and NZPA (17 January 2007). "Expert refuses to give up 20-year search for kokako". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 October 2011.
- ↑ N.Z. Forestry , May 1996
