Trixie and Nacho Produce 55 Chicks, Lifting Kākāriki Karaka Population by More Than 10%
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 2
Trixie and Nacho Produce 55 Chicks, Lifting Kākāriki Karaka Population by More Than 10%
6 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 2
Fifty-five chicks from Trixie and Nacho in two years have boosted the critically endangered kākāriki karaka population by more than 10%, with 33 hatching in the latest December-to-April breeding season.
About 450 orange-fronted parakeets remain in the wild and captivity, making the pair’s output unusually important as New Zealand tries to stop the species from disappearing again.
Isaac Conservation and Wildlife Trust in Christchurch paired the birds in 2024 after letting compatible parakeets choose mates; other breeding pairs typically produce only 10 to 15 chicks.
The species was declared extinct in 1919 and again in 1965 before being rediscovered both times, and conservationists are now relying on predator-free sanctuaries and captive breeding to avoid a third loss.
With 55 new chicks from one pair, where will New Zealand's rarest parakeet live next?
Can two 'super parrots' truly save their species, or are they creating a new genetic crisis?