Callaeas cinereus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	AVES	PASSERIFORMES	CALLAEATIDAE

Scientific Name:

Callaeas cinereus

Species Authority:

(Gmelin, 1788)

Common Name/s:

English

–

Kokako

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:

Endangered A2bd;C2a(i) ver 3.1

Year Assessed:

2010

Assessor/s:

BirdLife International

Reviewer/s:

Calvert, R., Symes, A., Butchart, S.

Contributor/s:

Innes, J., Flux, I.

Justification:
This species declined very rapidly over the past three generations until the end of the 20th Century, and it now has a very small effective population size because intense predation has left many subpopulations with an excess of unpaired males. For these reasons the species qualifies as Endangered. Intensive conservation efforts since 1990 are aiming to restore the population to c.1,000 pairs by the year 2020; the population is now increasing steadily.

History:

2009	–	Endangered
2008	–	Endangered
2006	–	Endangered
2004	–	Endangered
2000	–	Endangered
1996	–	Endangered
1994	–	Endangered

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is endemic to New Zealand. The last confirmed sightings of the South Island subspecies cinerea were in 1967¹. The North Island subspecies wilsoni survives in the Hunua Ranges, Mataraua, Kaharoa, Rotoehu, Pureora and Mapara forests, and Te Urewera National Park⁵. Its total adult population is estimated at 1,538 birds, but there is still a predominance of males and the breeding population is now 769 pairs^9,10. Populations are increasing in areas of intensive conservation work including the establishment of translocated populations at Secretary Island and Omaio/East Cape⁹, but continue to decline elsewhere, with most unmanaged sites now extinct. Observed rates of decline have been as high as 50% in three years in some areas^2,4. Subpopulations are entirely isolated by fragmentation². This species is entirely conservation-dependent, each population requiring ongoing annual pest-management until at least 25 breeding pairs are present, followed by at least 3 years of management every 10 years to maintain population growth. Although the population is now increasing thanks to the intensive management conducted for the species, the number of locations where it is found continues to decline as unmanaged populations disappear, and over the past three generations the global population has certainly shown a very rapid decline.
Countries:	Native: New Zealand
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	In 2008 the global population contained 769 breeding pairs (J. Innes in litt. 2009). The number of mature individuals is higher, but the population has a surplus of adult males, thus the effective population size is lower.
Population Trend:	Decreasing

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	The species prefers lowland, tall podocarp/hardwood forests with a high diversity of plant species. It is rarely found in modified forests, including selectively logged forests³. Its diet varies seasonally. It prefers fruit, but also eats leaves, invertebrates, buds, flowers and nectar⁶. It usually lays three eggs³. In years of high food availability, pairs will raise several clutches. The average age of parents at Mapara is 6.3 years, but this may be an underestimate of the global average as the population is young owing to intensive management².
Systems:	Terrestrial

Habitat and Ecology:

The species prefers lowland, tall podocarp/hardwood forests with a high diversity of plant species. It is rarely found in modified forests, including selectively logged forests³. Its diet varies seasonally. It prefers fruit, but also eats leaves, invertebrates, buds, flowers and nectar⁶. It usually lays three eggs³. In years of high food availability, pairs will raise several clutches. The average age of parents at Mapara is 6.3 years, but this may be an underestimate of the global average as the population is young owing to intensive management².

Systems:

Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	The historical decline was due to large-scale habitat destruction, fragmentation and the introduction of predators and competitors. Predation of eggs and chicks by black rat Rattus rattus and brush-tailed possum Trichosurus vulpecula is the main cause of nest failure, whereas deaths to nesting adult females were caused by stoats Mustela erminea⁸. These introduced predators are currently the primary threat to the species. At Mapara Wildlife Management Reserve just 8% of nesting attempts successfully fledged young in the absence of predator control versus 61% when predators were intensively trapped⁸. T. vulpecula also competes for many preferred food items, and introduced goats and deer destroy favoured understorey food-plants⁴.

Major Threat(s):

The historical decline was due to large-scale habitat destruction, fragmentation and the introduction of predators and competitors. Predation of eggs and chicks by black rat Rattus rattus and brush-tailed possum Trichosurus vulpecula is the main cause of nest failure, whereas deaths to nesting adult females were caused by stoats Mustela erminea⁸. These introduced predators are currently the primary threat to the species. At Mapara Wildlife Management Reserve just 8% of nesting attempts successfully fledged young in the absence of predator control versus 61% when predators were intensively trapped⁸. T. vulpecula also competes for many preferred food items, and introduced goats and deer destroy favoured understorey food-plants⁴.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	Conservation Actions Underway Most of the remaining habitat is protected and almost all key subpopulations are managed for R. rattus and T. vulpecula. Recent research shows that 'pulsing' poison bait delivery (at least 3 managed years every 10) is likely to be the most effective way of dealing with the predator threat once managed populations have reached a certain size⁷. Birds have been introduced to four islands³. Young females have also been introduced to two managed remnant male/predominantly male populations on the mainland², and several new populations (in areas of their previous range) have been established through translocation of adults to sites at which predators are controlled. Two small captive populations are held³. Conservation Actions Proposed Improve the understanding of the Te Urewera population, and modify management developed in smaller forest blocks, to assist large-scale protection and enhancement. Develop sustainable long-term management practises by research and mathematical modeling, and implement them. Reintroduce birds to newly-managed forest areas².

Conservation Actions:

Conservation Actions Underway
Most of the remaining habitat is protected and almost all key subpopulations are managed for R. rattus and T. vulpecula. Recent research shows that 'pulsing' poison bait delivery (at least 3 managed years every 10) is likely to be the most effective way of dealing with the predator threat once managed populations have reached a certain size⁷. Birds have been introduced to four islands³. Young females have also been introduced to two managed remnant male/predominantly male populations on the mainland², and several new populations (in areas of their previous range) have been established through translocation of adults to sites at which predators are controlled. Two small captive populations are held³.

Conservation Actions Proposed
Improve the understanding of the Te Urewera population, and modify management developed in smaller forest blocks, to assist large-scale protection and enhancement. Develop sustainable long-term management practises by research and mathematical modeling, and implement them. Reintroduce birds to newly-managed forest areas².

Citation:	BirdLife International 2010. Callaeas cinereus. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 08 February 2012.
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