The original Kererū Discovery Project was launched in 2005 as a partnership between Te Papa Tongarewa Museum of New Zealand (original coordinating partner), Wellington Zoo, Victoria University of Wellington, Zealandia (Karori Sanctuary Trust), and the Department of Conservation. These founding partners coordinated and collaborated on a number of sub-projects that all centred around these key messages:

 

  • Backyard choices make a difference
  • What’s good for kererū is good for us
  • The bird in your backyard is the bird in the bush
  • Kererū are valuable for themselves
  • It doesn’t stop with kererū


The objective was to combine individual strengths of each organisation to provide a team that was more effective than the partners alone in order to achieve two main goals: (1) change people’s behaviours to create an environment that ensured a sustainable future for kererū, and (2) build a knowledge base of key information accessible to the community.

 

A new project vision

WWF-New Zealand took over the project administering role in 2011, and was soon joined by partnering organization Wellington City Council. We will continue to promote the original partner goals of changing people’s behaviors towards the environment and building a knowledge base. Further, we will take the project to the next step by encouraging and supporting people to take action for kererū in our own backyards.

Why kererū?

 

While kererū are not classified as endangered, like most New Zealand forest species, their numbers have declined dramatically as a result of habitat loss, competition and predation. All of these are a direct or indirect result of the successive waves of human arrival in New Zealand. Kererū were chosen as a focal species because:

 

  • Although once in nationwide decline, kererū are becoming more common in New Zealand’s cities. If we can help kererū, then we can help New Zealand’s wider indigenous biodiversity.
  • Kererū are a key species for the survival of New Zealand’s wider forest ecosystems which are under threat. Kererū are the only birds left that can disperse the seeds of large fruited native trees. 
  • Kererū are an iconic and highly visible species that many New Zealanders can easily recognize and are fond of. Getting involved with kererū will introduce many new people to conservation and community restoration. Research shows that people’s involvement in community restoration projects and wider contact with nature has many benefits, including increasing mental health and wellbeing, increasing connection with the community and improved physical health.