How the world's fattest parrot came back from the brink

What a cutie.

Fatty has fragrant feathers, the article says. 😘😘

A fungal disease struck the vets? Gross! 🤮

The vet is cute. He was a fan of Gerald Durrell growing up ❤️

Polly wants a cracker — with cheddar cheese and soft spreads.

How are they so tame?

I like the coloring of that bird. Imagine some creature like that living 100 years. Must be quite safe forests.

I've been lucky enough to be up close to some of these guys - they are so funny and adorable. You can donate online to help finance their care. The work being done to prevent their extinction is amazing.

Here is a short video about them. It states there are only 160 but at this stage it has grown to 211 kakapo.

Here's a video

[quote]How are they so tame?

This is why they are so endangered. They don't have a natural fear of things.

Polly needs a treadmill.

It's not just the insular tameness which put them in danger, but the fact that they live on the ground and relied on camouflage to elude predators. When humans introduced dogs and cats and other peedatory mammals to the island, the kakapo had no defense and their numbers dropped.

And once their members dropped, the fact that they breed very slowly became a huge problem, they couldn't replace those lost. Especially since males and females live solitary lives and literally coukdnt find each other to mate, once the numbers dropped go a critical level. So that's why they were moved to their own island, so tg hey could be free of predators, and be within kakapo walking distance of the opposite sex.

Aargh!! Goddamn phone "keyboard".

Carbface. Ew!

Kakapo. Cute name. Is it fatty in Maori?

Depending on the specific breed, parrots can live anywhere from 50-90 years.

Do not get a parrot for a pet. The odds are very high that it will outlive you.

Who is going to take in an old parrot as a pet after you die, you selfish bastards.

I would take in an old kakapo.

An inspiration to us all.

R12 here, on a proper keyboard. Okay, the kakapo nearly went extinct when mammalian predators were introduced to the island, they loved the chance to hunt a nice big juicy bird that tried to defend itself by hiding in the bushes and holding completely still! And the smaller predators like rats loved the fact that they nested on the ground, where even a rodent could eat their single egg or chick. So, once white people brought their familiar animals to New Zealand, the kakapo numbers dropped sharply. Which is when their slow and indifferent means of reproduction means that their numbers dropped drastically due to declining reproduction - males and females live solitary lives apart from each other, and during breeding season the male will call for females and she'll walk to miles to meet him, during the few days she's in estrus. Unfortunately once their numbers dropped, the males and females were so far apart from each other than they literally couldn't find each other to breed, during the few days a year the females were willing to mate!

So yes, some time ago, every kakapo in the world was moved to a predator-free island, an island from which every last feral cat and rat had been removed, and the kakapos could be within walking distance of each other. With that their numbers have been slowly rising, but very slowly. The species just breeds slowly.

R19 that’s adorable. But sad they got preyed on.

I know, it's both sweet and sad that a species could be so innocent that it lives and nests on the ground, with no speed or means of defense, because it evolved where nothing would disturb its peaceful little life. The kakapo came from a different world than our own. As such, I really want to defend the big fluffy green innocents.

Another such species is the Fairy Tern of the Indian Ocean, a species which is tiny and beautiful, and so innocent it lays its eggs on tree branches without building a nest. Needless to say, any disturbance of its forest means the egg or chick is lost, so its numbers have also been dropping since it came into contact with humans.

r15 It means 'night parrot.'

We also have the kākā, another parrot. It is also endangered but is now making a comeback. There are flocks that fly around in the suburbs of Wellington city and cause all sorts of havoc with urban trees.

kākā ^^^

We also have the kākā,

That means shit. So you're saying you have a shitty parrot.

The kakapo must be protected. All dogs and cats in nzed must be exterminated.

Has it ever won the bestest bird contest in NZ. It should.

“The world’s fattest parrot?”

There's something very poignant about these intelligent, defenseless, long-lived birds living in exile on a small island for their protection. It's like knowing that gnomes still exist in our lifetimes. Another very rare, flightless New Zealand bird is the Takahe, which was believed extinct until living specimens were filmed in 1948.

That one at r28 looks like a dinosaur.

At least they've got a chance.

R29, Yes, and that's one of the things that I think is interesting to consider. Birds, of course, are the last living branch of the dinosaur family tree. When the Maori first arrived in New Zealand, there were no land mammals present. Bird occupied all the niches normally filled elsewhere by mammals. So the early Maori arrived on islands with a whole range of moas ranging up to 6.5 ft tall, as well as a variety of other flightless birds, It would have been like arriving in a land of dinosaurs, which it really was!

fubsy wubsy chubsy

For me it's rather fascinating that once there were basically predator free zones on this earth where such harmless creatures lived peacefully. Humanity globalized this planet in more ways than one.

NZ wasnt a predator free zone before the humans came, there were tons of predatory birds including the giant dinosaurs moas. I guess the kakapo evolved to escape from predatory birds, but it had no defense against predatory mammals like feral dogs.

It's such a strange thing to contemplate, for most of its history, the island of NZ was only inhabited by birds and insects. The humans only arrived a few centuries ago.

The moa wasn't predatory, but the Haast's Eagle was - Maori mythology suggests that it even stole and ate children. Of course it died out when the moa died out.

Well I never in all my life!

THANK YOU, R36!!!

Sorry to shout, but the town where I live is shutting down as of today and I've been ready to cry all evening. But you gave me something hilarious and marvelous to see. It's enough to make me like this planet again.

I am the Memorial Day Kakapo!

Keep the Thanksgiving Otter away from me, it's a mammal with fangs!

r36 I wonder if the bird fancied him because he had a green shirt on. Or maybe it was just all the attention he was giving him?

Best wishes, R37. I'm in the same boat and I know exactly how you feel. If I find any other head-humping — animal, vegetable, or mineral — videos involving Stephen Fry I'll be sure to pass them on!

[quote]It's not just the insular tameness which put them in danger, but the fact that they live on the ground and relied on camouflage to elude predators.

The birds are big enough and fully capable of defending themselves but they don't. Other similar sized land birds can beat off stoats and rats, but these guys simply don't fight back.

They're innocents R41. I mean, their game plan for a defense is to freeze and keep perfectly still. Which is clearly a "Here I am. Come and get me!" strategy. Bless them for hanging in there. I love that they are increasing in numbers. Many thanks to the caring, helping humans.

If they evolved in a world where the main predators were raptors, like that giant pterodactyl-eagle, then freezing in place and looking like a moss-covered rock was an excellent survival strategy. Eagles and hawks hunt by sight, and a kakapo that's holding perfectly still is invisible to a sight-predator's eye.

But then mammals who hunt by scent came to New Zealand.

[quote] But then mammals who hunt by scent came to New Zealand.

Is that why his feathers are fragrant? To hold still and pretend to be a flower?

The feathers smell kind of like lollies.