Back from the edge of extinction: Meet the world’s fattest parrot that just had its biggest breeding season in 30 years

Nature has innumerable creatures that play a unique role in striking the right balance in the biodiversity pyramid. When a particular species becomes vulnerable to a reduction in its numbers, this balance gets disrupted.Around 30 years ago, one species of one of our most favourite birds began to become endangered, but this time they had an outstanding breeding season as revealed by the New Zealand news outlet, RNZ.The kākāpō is a large, flightless parrot that lives only in New Zealand and it is often described as the world’s fattest and heaviest parrot. According to New Zealand’s Department of Conservation, males can weigh up to roughly 4 kilograms, making them much heavier than most other parrot species. The bird has a distinctive green and white‑gray plumage, is nocturnal, and lives quietly on forested islands, which is one reason it was so vulnerable to introduced predators.Hunting, habitat loss, and invasive animals such as rats and cats drove the kākāpō almost to extinction by the 1990s. Today, all remaining kākāpōs are wild and carefully managed under the Kākāpō Recovery Programme, which combines the work of rangers, scientists, volunteers, and iwi (Māori tribes).The latest breeding season has become a landmark for the species. In an update released on April 3, representatives from New Zealand’s Department of Conservation said that 105 kākāpō chicks had hatched from 256 eggs laid, with 98 chicks still alive and one egg still in an incubator. According to RNZ, this is the highest number of chicks since such records began 30 years ago, earning the season the label of “biggest on record” for the Kākāpō Recovery Programme.The kākāpō is known for breeding only once every few years, and many females typically raise just a single chick per season, which is one reason the population has been so slow to recover. This time, the unusually high hatch count hints that the species may be making a slow but real comeback.Despite the encouraging numbers, not all the new chicks are out of danger. Sarah Manktelow, Kākāpō Recovery Programme ranger, told RNZ’s Kākāpō Files podcast that seven chicks have died so far and four others have been moved to Dunedin Wildlife Hospital for treatment. Kākāpō chicks are only considered adults once they reach about 150 days old, which will happen in mid‑July, so rangers are watching closely in the weeks ahead.Conservationists remain hopeful Deidre Vercoe, the Department of Conservation’s operations manager for kākāpō, told Mongabay, “Every new chick brings the species further from the brink of extinction,” adding that “there's always a sense of hope and optimism for the future.” With around 235 kākāpōs estimated in the wild today, this record‑breaking season is a powerful reminder that, with careful management, even a species on the edge can still find a second chance.