Yellow-Crowned Parakeet

Mjobling, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cyanoramphus auriceps

Yellow-Crowned Parakeet or Kakariki are extinct in the Tangihua forest

They were once extremely common throughout New Zealand. They are  still present in most large native forests in the three main islands. Though it is absent Northland. they can be found on Little Barrier, the Hen and Chickens.
Rosella’s are often seen and can be mistaken for them.

Description

The yellow-crowned parakeet is a small, forest-dwelling, long-tailed, predominantly green parrot with a yellow crown, a narrow crimson band between the crown and the cere, a red spot on each side of the rump and a blue leading edge to the outer wing. The bill is pale bluish-grey with a black tip and cutting edge; the legs and feet black-brown.

Breeding

Yellow-crowned parakeets are mostly summer breeders, but when food is abundant they can breed throughout the year and raise multiple broods. They nest in holes in trees – mostly knot holes in large trees up to 32 m off the ground. The 2-9 eggs are laid on to rotten wood; the female alone incubates, but the male remains attentive, and feeds the female by regurgitation near the nest.

Behaviour and ecology

Yellow-crowned parakeets spend most of their time high in trees eating seeds, buds and invertebrates. They occasionally come down to the forest floor to eat seeds and to bathe. They are strong fliers and sometimes fly high above the canopy. When breeding, they associate in pairs but at other times they can form large flocks.
Because they mostly forage high in trees they are most often detected by their calls, particularly their chatter.

Threats and conservation

Issues

Yellow-crowned parakeets are preyed on by stoats, rats and possums, particularly while they are nesting and roosting in holes. High numbers of rats and stoats means  predation can be very high and nesting success low.
In many places they are conspicuously rare at low altitudes but more common higher up where rats and perhaps stoats are less common.
other issues are

• competition from introduced parakeets,
• disease introduced by the pet industry
• interbreeding with released non native parakeets

Action

Very long term if at all possible

• Removal of predators
• Removal or reduction in numbers of introduced parakeets
• Re-established by translational of wild birds

In June 2017 up to 40 kakariki will be caught and translocated from Hauturu (Little Barrier) Island to Moturua island in the Bay of Islands. The requirement for Stage Two and the translocation of a further 40 birds in either 2018 or 19 will be dependent on the outcomes of Stage One.