The Kokako is arguably New Zealand's most delightful songbird. For those that are fortunate enough to experience it, the haunting sound that gives this bird the alternative name of "Organ Bird" will linger in the memory eternally. There are 2 subspecies of Kokako, both growing to a length of 38cm (15"). The North Island Kokako (pictured) is considered endangered as only around 1400 are believed to still exist. The existence of the South Island Kokako, characterised by orange rather than blue wattles, is somewhat debatable.
As is regrettably the norm for so many species, the existence of these birds has been threatened by loss of habitat, competition for food and predation by the likes of cats, rats, mustelids, opposums and harrier hawks. However, by translocating some of these birds to predator free offshore islands and managing mainland habitats, the future of the North Island subspecies looks reasonably assured. The most successful Kokako population this decade is at Mapara in the King Country. Mapara is considered a "mainland island", a block of bush surrounded by farmland. By severely limiting the predators and competitors for food, the numbers have grown from 5 females in 1990 to around 160 birds today.
The Kokako is one of 3 Wattlebirds that are known to have existed in New Zealand, the others being the Saddleback and the Huia. The Saddleback was once considered endangered but, as a result of species management, numbers now exceed 5000, although they are restricted to offshore islands. The last "authenticated" sighting of the Huia was in 1907 but several sightings since then lend credence to theories that this bird may have survived until fairly recently. However, whilst their existence cannot be totally ruled out, the possibly of Huia still surviving today is certainly remote.
