(When Duncan Wright contacted us back in 2010 to say that he thought we might enjoy showing some photos on 10,0000 Birds of Wellington’s big, boisterous parrots, he was 100% spot-on. Three years later, we still look forward to his weekly dispatches from the austral ends of the Earth! Let’s revisit this gem about a nifty New Zealand parrot…)

The Kaka (Nestor meridionalis), an Endangered endemic with a bill that Captain Hook would be proud to wield, is a bird that is surely one of those birds that ‘once seen, are never forgotten’. So, imagine getting these beauties in your back garden! As Duncan explained, the birds in the following photographs (bar the last two which were taken on nearby Kapiti Island) “dropped by our house a few times to sample our offered apples (one of the views has Wellington Harbour in the background).” Imagine parrots in your back yard!

Who wouldn’t want this spectacular and rare bird visiting their gardens? According to Duncan, while most Wellingtonians apparently welcome these awesome parrots, at least a few selfish people are shamefully less forgiving.

All photographs copyright Duncan Wright but may be used under a Creative Commons licence.

Range & population (taken from BirdLife International’s Datazone):