Crowds enchanted by kakapo chicks

There were six very popular chicks in Invercargill on Saturday.

More than 1300 people filed through the Invercargill Workingmen's Club for the Department of Conservation's kakapo viewing day, which for many would have been the first and only chance to see a kakapo in real life.

As each group entered the darkened room the smiles quickly spread on the faces in the crowd with oohs and aahs and plenty of finger pointing.

"They're much bigger than I thought they would be," seven-year-old Luke Holland said, while eight-year-old Callum Taylor was enchanted by two of the chicks playing clumsily in the enclosure.

Kakapo Recovery Team leader Diedre Vercoe was pleased the day had once again proved popular with southerners.

But there were also many people from out of town who made the trip to see the parrots, including one couple from Wellington, she said.

Department ranger Ros Cole said the first three 65 to 70-day-old chicks on show were initially a little wary about their audiences, but they soon relaxed and began to play up to the attention.

Three more were added to the enclosure for the afternoon session, she said.

And although the crowd was down on last year, up against the Bluff Oyster Festival the numbers were encouraging, she said.

One observer, Colin Winter, said that seeing the kakapo first hand reinforced his view they must be protected. "They're unique, there's nothing like them in the world and today shows what great work DOC are doing to save them."

The Kakapo Recovery Programme is a partnership between DOC, Rio Tinto Alcan NZ and Forest and Bird.

- © Fairfax NZ News