12 Feb 2009

Rimu Fruit And Kakapo Breeding

From Our Changing World, 9:06 pm on 12 February 2009

4

Codfish Island Whenua Hou, looking across to the Ruggedy Range, Stewart Island.

2

In the second programme in our kakapo series, Kakapo Recovery Programme scientists Ron Moorhouse and Graeme Elliott talk about the complexities of periodic mass fruiting by rimu trees and how that triggers the kakapo's irregular breeding. They also talk about attempts to mimic the qualities of rimu fruit in the development of an artificial diet for kakapo, in the hope that one day this diet could be used to trigger more frequent breeding.

Find out more about the Department of Conservation's kakapo programme and David Raubenheimer's research on developing the perfect kakapo diet.

Ron Moorhouse checking the state of the rimu fruit crop on Codfish Island Whenua Hou.

Get the RNZ app

for easy access to all your favourite programmes

Subscribe to Our Changing World

Podcast (MP3) Oggcast (Vorbis)