Kakapo Breeding Season Coincides with Rimu Mast, Offering Conservation Hope

New Zealand’s critically endangered Kakapo parrot has begun its first breeding season in four years, an event conservationists anticipate will be highly productive due to a natural phenomenon. This reproductive cycle is directly stimulated by a ‘mega-mast’ fruiting of the native rimu tree, *Dacrydium cupressinum*, which serves as the essential biological trigger for the nocturnal, flightless birds to initiate nesting.

As of January 2026, the total Kakapo population stands at 236 individuals, including 83 females of breeding age. These birds reside on three isolated, predator-free islands off the southern coast of New Zealand, such as Whenua Hou/Codfish Island. The management strategy for this crucial season involves a strategic pivot toward reduced human intervention to encourage more natural hatching outcomes. This shift aims to mitigate the species’ historical dependence on intensive human rearing, a practice that has inadvertently caused some birds to imprint on their human caretakers.

Deidre Vercoe, the Department of Conservation's operations manager for kākāpō recovery, noted that while the last season occurred in 2022, the 2026 event is highly anticipated, with preparations underway for what could be the most significant breeding season since the program's inception 30 years ago. The Kakapo Recovery Programme, a joint effort established in 1995 between the Department of Conservation (DOC) and Ngāi Tahu, has successfully increased the population from a low of just 51 birds. The 2026 event marks the 13th breeding cycle under this long-running program, which previously recorded a high of 252 birds in 2022.

The availability of plentiful, high-energy rimu fruit is vital, providing the necessary nutrition for females to potentially raise up to two or three chicks, a significant increase over the typical single chick raised in less abundant years. This season, conservationists are implementing lower-intervention strategies, prioritizing checks for genetically valuable eggs and chicks while allowing more eggs to incubate naturally and decreasing the frequency of supplementary feeding. This evolving management philosophy reflects a broader goal articulated by Vercoe: success is now measured by the creation of healthy, self-sustaining populations that are thriving, not merely surviving, with the ultimate aim of reducing intensive management over time.

Monitoring by DOC indicates approximately 50–60% rimu fruiting across the main breeding islands, suggesting nearly all 83 breeding-age females could potentially nest. If this productivity level is achieved, the season could yield over 50 chicks, substantially advancing the long-term objective of reintroducing the species to predator-free areas on mainland New Zealand. The unique biological link between the kākāpō and the intermittent rimu mast underscores the disproportionate importance of each successful breeding year for the species’ genetic diversity and population growth.