Hello,

Easter break, autumn days, school holidays, the roar, whatever it is that gets you into our wonderful outdoors, please keep your eyes peeled, ears ready and technology handy for a sign of the South Island kōkako!

We were thrilled to read the story of the search for the bird in the international Guardian last week - online around the world and in the printed version in the UK. If you missed it, have a look here.

In this newsletter, we share news of some interesting recordings made in Kahurangi National Park and some of the images we're seeing from our trail cameras also in Kahurangi NP as well as Abel Tasman NP and Granville Forest in the Grey Valley on the West Coast.

Sadly, we were not successful in our bid to the National Geographic's fund to help the recovery of species on the brink of extinction, but we have raised awareness of the plight of the SI kōkako in the process and hope to attract more interest and support as a result - we'll keep you posted.

A couple of very positive news stories about two very special rare birds are included below - these wonderful stories continue to give us hope.

For now, have a safe time out there - hunters, trampers, bikers - everyone, and we look forward to your continued interest, support and reports.

Inger Perkins

Manager, South Island Kōkako Charitable Trust

Renewed interest in eastern Kahurangi NP

Two reports in recent months are reinvigorating our interest in the Cobb River area in eastern Kahurangi National Park.

Both encounter reports were supplied with recordings. This is a huge advantage for us as not only can we run it past experienced ears but we can run it through a recording analysis program, which is improving all the time through artificial intelligence.

One encounter report described the sound they had heard:

"Bird calls, long and low sounding. Almost like the sound made when you blow across the top of an open bottle."

Another noted "an exceptional amount of surrounding bell bird song/activity", which we believe is a strong indicator of the possible presence of a kōkako.

What the camera saw

There are now over 40 motion-activated trail cameras at sites of interest recording images of movement in the hope of picking up an image of a South Island kōkako. Clearly we haven't captured that precious image yet - you'd be the first to know!

We are incredibly fortunate to have committed and generous volunteers installing their own and some Trust cameras to follow up the most compelling reports of encounters.

In this article, we share their methods and findings - including some interesting and unusual images of native birds but also some of introduced species including predators.

Find out more and have a flick through some images here.

Long-extinct bird found in Borneo

Although some might say hope only goes so far, there is always hope, as this wonderful story of the rediscovery of the black-browed babbler from Borneo shows.

Read the story here.

NI Kōkako population reaches 2000 pairs

From a population of just 300 breeding pairs in the late '90s, the North Island kōkako now boasts 2000 pairs. Predator control, habitat restoration and community involvement have been key - and we congratulate all those involved!

Read the wonderful news here.

We still urgently need Friends!

We and the South Island kōkako need more Friends! We created the idea of Friends to support our search through a simple annual $100 donation - we know you can do the maths, but it doesn't hurt to say that it's less than $10 a month! Could you help us out and ensure this work continues?

Don't forget, when we have enough new Friends, we will be drawing a winner from our Friends for a beautiful painting of the South Island kōkako by Jos Browning.

Why not become a Friend now or buy it for someone else as a gift.

Thank you very much.

Find out more here.

Need more information?

There's plenty on our website and we have put a few facts, figures, ideas and advice together so you can see the whole story easily and quickly here.

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