Kereru in Crisis

Once common, the kereru is now a threatened species. Kereru are also known as kukupa, kuku or native wood pigeon.

Why are kereru declining?

1. Food for kereru is in short supply
In some areas and seasons, food for kereru is in short supply because of loss of habitat, poor fruiting or competition with possums. This reduces the kereru's ability to reproduce.

2. Kereru are slow breeders
Unlike other birds such as ducks or pukeko, kereru only produce one egg each year - even in a good season. This egg is incubated for one month and doesn't fledge for another 4-6 weeks. During this time the chick is dependent on both its parents, and is highly vulnerable to predation.

3. Shortened life span of the birds on the mainland
Although able to live up to 15 years on offshore islands, predation by introduced animals results in an average life expectancy of kereru of 5-6 years on the mainland. This is often reduced to about 3 years where illegal hunting pressure occurs. In one forest where there was extensive evidence of poaching, the decline was a staggering 70% between 1979 - 1993. With only 10-15% nesting success rate, many birds are dying before they can reproduce.

Unless active steps are taken to halt this decline, this magnificent bird will disappear from most forests on the mainland

Why are kereru so important to our forests?

Now that other large birds like the moa are extinct, the kereru is the only bird left with a beak that can open wide enough to swallow the big seeds of trees such as puriri, miro, taraire, karaka, tawa and kohekohe.

They also eat the fruit of nikau, titoki, pigeonwood, supplejack, kahikatea and many shrub species and in spring the leaves and flowers of houhere and kowhai, feeding on a total of 72 native species.

Undigested seeds eaten by the kereru fall to the ground in its droppings, where they sprout and grow - often many kilometres from the parent tree. These birds can fly long distances (up to 25 kilometres). This spreads the seeds of native species far and wide, helping our native forests to regenerate.

What You Can Do

Write to the Minister of Conservation urging DOC to do more pest control to protect forests with kereru (Parliament Buildings, Wellington - no stamp required)
Talk to your family and friends in hui at your marae about the dangers to the kereru
Grow native forest trees that provide food for kereru (puriri, taraire, karaka, miro, tawa, wineberry, kowhai, kahikatea, houhere, nikau, mahoe)
Control pests and create habitats for kereru

Control pests
Possums, ship rats and stoats are all agile tree climbers and can attack the eggs and chicks. Possums and rats can be easily controlled using poisons and traps. Cats are also a threat. They can be trapped in cages. Some introduced birds, such as magpie and myna will eat eggs and chicks, as well as competing with native birds for territory and berries.
Contact your regional council pest officer or Forest & Bird for information on trapping.

Protect the Forest
Covenants provide legal protection on the title of the land and ensure future owners cannot damage it. They can be arranged through the Department of Conservation, the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust or Nga Whenua Rahui for Maori landowners.

Financial assistance with legal costs and fencing maybe available. Rate relief is offered by some district councils for land that is set aside from grazing. Also some regional councils give environmental grants for fencing and planting where land improvement agreements are entered into. Environmental grants are also available from the Lottery Grants Board, ASB Bank, Ron Greenwood Trust, Pacific Conservation and Development Trust.

Protect kereru from hunting
Remember this bird is legally protected. Tell the Department of Conservation if you know about illegal hunting.

Kereru confiscated after poaching discovered in Northland photo by Ross Atkinson

Control weeds
Weed control is important because invasion of forests by weeds can stop the native plants from growing, and the forest may eventually collapse. Creepers and vines are especially dangerous e.g. old man's beard, jasmine, honeysuckle, wandering jew, climbing asparagus. Wild ginger, ladder fern and agapanthus are just a few of the many weeds threatening our forests.
See your local regional council for more information relating to your area and for advice on methods of weed removal.

Plant native food species
As well as the slow growing trees such as miro, tawa and puriri, faster growing small trees and shrubs such as houhere, wineberry, five-finger, pate and tree fuchsia (kotukutuku) can all be planted in forest clearings and margins, and any other unused ground. Beware of planting desirable food species near houses and roads, where the birds are at risk from flying into windows and vehicles.
Some exotic species such as tree lucerne are fast growing and provide food in the short term while native species are reaching maturity. However some exotic species eaten by pigeons are forest weeds and should not be grown. These include guava, monkey apple and Taiwan cherry.

Fence forests from grazing animals
Grazing animals eat young seedlings which are needed to replace the older trees as they die. Without natural regeneration, the forest will eventually die. Wild animals such as deer and goats also stop the forest from regenerating. Large grazing animals damage the roots of shallow rooted trees such as puriri, increasing the risk of disease.

Awhinatia mai. Kia ora ai te kereru (kukupa) mo nga whakapuranga a muri mai

Help save the native wood pigeon for our future

Illustrations by Frances Smith
Kids with kereru photo by Wanda Viviequin

This page was updated on 17 March, 2008