Record 90 Kākāpō Chicks Lift Population to 325
Kākāpō have had their best breeding season on record. Ninety chicks hatched in New Zealand in 2026, bringing the population of the flightless parrot to 325. DOC confirmed the count on 1 September 2026, once the youngest chick reached 150 days old, an age when chicks are considered independent enough to be counted.
The reason for celebration? The population may not have been above 300 for as long as 75 years. “There is still a long road of recovery ahead,” says Deidre Vercoe, the manager of the New Zealand Conservation Department Kākāpō Recovery Programme.
From 51 Birds to 325
Kākāpō are the world’s heaviest parrot, with males weighing up to 4 kg. These nocturnal birds have yellow-green plumage and may live for 60 to 90 years. Due to the kākāpō evolving without ground predators, they lost the ability to fly. And when people brought cats and rats to New Zealand several hundred years ago, the birds had no way to escape.
Hunting, predators and habitat loss pushed the species to the edge. Low genetic diversity still causes infertility and poor hatching. The birds also breed only when native rimu trees fruit, every two to four years, with this breeding season arriving after a four-year gap.
Every kākāpō carries a small backpack radio transmitter, so the team can track where it is and how active it is.
Learning to Step Back
This season, the programme tested ways to intervene less. It used remote nest data to reduce on both egg and chick checks and extra feeding.
A few will remain unnamed to start shifting towards a more natural future.
More Birds, More Ground Needed
A growing population needs more safe habitat and the group's modelling suggests the next breeding season could come in 2028, just two years away.
Source
Record baby boom brings world’s heaviest parrot back from the brink | NBC News
