Forest & Bird Monthly Talk - Weka Update

Photo credit: Agnes Takacs

What research discoveries have been made about weka since 2015?
Speaker: Ralph Powlesland
Formerly employed as an ornithologist by the Department of Conservation until 2010. He
then retired to Manaroa in the Marlborough Sounds, where he has been studying weka ever
since.

The weka is the only endemic flightless bird species living on the South Island that has a
DOC threat classification of ‘Not Threatened’. The other flightless species are all threatened
(e.g. kiwi, takahe and kakapo), and are dependent for their survival on control of introduced
predator populations, such as those of stoats and feral cats, or are restricted to predator-free
islands. The information presented during the talk will include various aspects of the species’
ecology, such as their territorial nature, habitat requirements, foods, breeding habits, and life
span. New research findings presented will include weka taxonomy, dispersal, costs and
benefits of aerial application of 1080, and their role in seed dispersal.