Sirocco the kākāpō has returned to the limelight as part of a display at Orokonui Ecosanctuary near Dunedin. (First published September 10, 2018)

Move over Pink – another celebrity is performing before full houses in Dunedin. Sirocco the kākāpō is back.

The cheeky parrot and official "spokesbird" of the Department of Conservation (DOC) is on display at Dunedin's Orokonui Ecosanctuary during September.

Just two days ago, he was living on a remote island in Fiordland, but appears to be at ease with being in the limelight once more.

Hamish McNeilly/Stuff At times Sirocco was a reluctant media star.

A respiratory illness meant Sirocco had to be hand-reared by DOC rangers as a chick, and so he was comfortable around humans, DOC threatened species ambassador Nicola Toki said.

And she should know.

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Hamish McNeilly/Stuff Sirocco eyes up the cameras.

Sirocco once tried to mate with her gumboots – and her head. "I considered it a privilege," she said.

The kākāpō is now returning from his self-imposed exile for his first public performance in four years. He hid on his Fiordland island home for two years, reappearing just in time for this 21st birthday earlier this year.

The cheeky parrot became a worldwide phenomenon after he attempted to mate with zoologist Mark Carwardine's head on the BBC programme Last Chance to See, starring Stephen Fry.

HAMISH McNEILLY/STUFF Sirocco gets fed pine nuts form handler Daryl Eason at Dunedin's Orokonui Ecosanctuary.

Almost 8 million people watched the YouTube clip, which features Fry telling Carwardine: "You are being shagged by a rare parrot﻿."

Skraarrrk! Here’s a rare opportunity to see me in all my glory. I’ll be at @NZEcosanctuary in Dunedin this September. Public tour spots are very limited, you can book from 15 August through Orokonui: https://t.co/S5gGGW0lzY 📷: Jake Osborne pic.twitter.com/Y9v4EehR3k — Sirocco Kākāpō (@Spokesbird) August 13, 2018

Nothing quite so X-rated happened when Sirocco welcomed a tour group on Sunday night, where he preferred to be hand-fed pine nuts from handler Daryl Eason and let out the occasional squawk.

"Sirocco is not a captive bird. He lives in the wild most of the time. He just happens to love people and that works for us because people love to see him," Toki said.

Tickets to Orokonui Ecosanctuary's night-time tours have been selling fast, with people eager to catch a glimpse of one the estimated 149 kākāpō left in existence.

Toki anticipated the population would soon be growing, as the upcoming breeding season was predicted to be a bumper one.

"Our biggest problem now is ... we are running out of room. Where are we going to put them without enough predator-free places for them," Toki said.