TOH edition: Friday, 18 September 2026 · Animals & Wonder
Down to Just 51 Birds in 1995, the World's Rarest Parrot Just Welcomed 90 Independent Chicks
Reported by Smithsonian Magazine
Publisher date:
New Zealand's critically endangered kakapo population has reached 325 individuals after a record 90 chicks reached their 150-day independence benchmark this season. The milestone marks a dramatic turnaround for the flightless parrot, which had dwindled to just 51 surviving individuals in 1995. Decades of intensive predator control, genetic management, and nest monitoring have proven that even species on the absolute brink can recover.
A bird species once considered functionally doomed has rebounded more than sixfold through dedicated care, showing extinction is not inevitable when communities refuse to give up.
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