I came to New Zealand in early 2013 to chase my childhood dream of obtaining a degree in Natural History Filmmaking so I could entertain and educate audiences through timeless wildlife stories from around the world.
As part of my degree I had to make a film so I began scouting ideas, and among the weird and wonderful creatures of this far away land, I came across Sirocco the kākāpō’s story. It was just one of those things; I simply knew this was the documentary I had to make!
Peek-a-boo
Sirocco is irresistibly endearing, cheekier than a monkey and remarkably bizarre in his mannerisms. Sirocco is an extraordinary character and his story is equally extraordinary; a true-blue rag to riches tale. My film sets out to tell that story; the one-of-a-kind tale of a bird catapulted to super stardom by a chain of rather strange events.
Check out those rockstar claws
Sirocco’s story is one of hope, joy and celebration. It optimistically premises the idea that there can be no better ambassadors for conservation than animals themselves.
My film about Sirocco has recently been nominated for a Panda Award, dubbed the ‘Green Oscars’, at the Wildscreen Film Festival.
Curious Sirocco
The film will be available online to view for free after the Wildscreen Film Festival in October, until then you will have to enjoy watching this short trailer:
There’s nothing quite like a kākāpō to make you smile…
“It seems that not only has the kākāpō forgotten how to fly, but it has forgotten that it has forgotten how to fly. Apparently a seriously worried kākāpō will sometimes run up a tree and jump out of it, whereupon it flies like a brick and lands in a graceless heap on the ground.” ~ Douglas Adams
Sirocco the kākāpō, our social media superstar and New Zealand’s Official Spokesbird for Conservation, was introduced to a new Japanese audience last month and gained thousands of devoted new fans as a result. Tourism New Zealand tells the story:
Sirocco kākāpō. Photo copyright: Janice McKenna
Sirocco the kākāpō has been charming a new international audience after a popular Japanese television show, with an audience in excess of 10 million, mentioned him during a feature on New Zealand in August.
When one of the presenters on the Sekai no Hatemade Itte Q! television show started talking about a kākāpō in New Zealand who had his own Twitter account, but could not recall the account name, the Tourism New Zealand team in Japan grabbed the opportunity to help and sent out a tweet introducing @Spokesbird:
“Looks like Sirocco is hooked on Twitter and Facebook! He said he wants a smart phone too, but the screen doesn’t work with his claws. There are only 124 kakapo alive today, and for Sirocco, every connection is an important one.”
Within a few hours this tweet had generated over 500 retweets and gained Sirocco the kākāpō over 2,000 new followers, all from Japan. Subsequent tweets about New Zealand’s native fauna and flora, as well as appeals to teach Sirocco Japanese, also proved popular with fans young and old.
One of the most popular tweets was when Sirocco tweeted:
“I’d love to fly over and visit you all in Japan, but I can’t because I’m the world’s only flightless parrot [sad face]. I’d love it if you came to see me though. I’ll be at the Orokonui Ecosanctuary in Dunedin from Sept 9 till Oct 6.”
The New Zealand parrot shot to fame in 2009 off the back of the BBC’s ‘Last Chance to See’ programme, when Sirocco attempted to mate with zoologist Mark Carwardine’s head. Footage of this event generated more than half a million hits on YouTube and had social network sites buzzing.
In January 2010 Sirocco was officially recognised as a conservation ambassador by the Prime Minister John Key, who named the parrot the “Official Spokesbird for Conservation”. Mr Key commented on Sirocco’s “worldwide fan base” who “hang on every squawk that comes out of his beak” and said Sirocco would focus attention on the plight of endangered species.
Sirocco will be on show from 6 Sept – 6 Oct at the Orokonui Ecosanctuary in Dunedin and bookings from Japan are already coming in, with one fan coming back to see Sirocco after visiting him two years ago.
Both the original BBC programme ‘Last Chance to See’ and the Japanese visit from ‘Sekai no Hatemade Itte Q!’ were supported by Tourism New Zealand’s international media programme, reinforcing that key messages from these visits have impact beyond just their in market on air screenings.
Connect with Sirocco on Facebook and Twitter. He’s looking forward to meeting you.
There are only 124 kākāpō left in the world and I have been waiting to see one up close and personal ever since I started working at DOC. I have seen the fans going crazy for kākāpō online, even voting them as the ‘World’s Favourite Species’ in a recent poll. They are a native New Zealand bird that I just had to meet.
I was glad to find out that Sirocco the kākāpō would be visiting Zealandia sanctuary in July. Sirocco has been touring New Zealand for a few years now and this was my chance to get close to one of the few remaining kākāpō left.
To say I was ‘excited’ is probably an understatement. When Zealandia announced the visit I got on their website immediately and booked my ticket for opening night. The anticipation only grew throughout June as Sirocco’s face popped up all over town and in the local newspapers and television.
Sirocco, world famous in Wellington
The night finally arrived. It was a cool but calm one, and luckily the earthquakes from the previous couple of days had quietened down. The night tour started with a screening of part of Alison Balance’s documentary ‘To Save the Kākāpō’ where we were introduced to Sirocco and the respiratory illness that almost took his life. Sirocco developed this condition while very young and was hand-raised, which has led him to imprint on humans. This makes him very comfortable around people (some might say too comfortable).
After the film the Zealandia guide took us into the sanctuary, making sure we checked all our bags and pockets for any stowaway pests that might harm the creatures that call Zealandia home. My bag was predator free (if a little messy) so we headed out into the night and up the track to see Sirocco.
The track along the way was beautifully lit up with fairy lights. While we walked I chatted with some of the other visitors in the group. I was surprised to find people had come from all over New Zealand, as well as the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan.
Lights lead the way to Sirocco
Sirocco spends his days at Zealandia in a specially fenced off section of forest and at night he comes out into a display area. When we finally arrived at Sirocco’s display area he was already hopping around at the glass peering through to suss out his newest visitors. There was a group of children who he immediately ran to. Sirocco loves children and, at 16 years old, he is not much more than a child himself.
Over the next 30 minutes the DOC ranger told us all about the lifestyle of the kākāpō and about the efforts being undertaken to bring them back from the brink of extinction. Everyone managed to get a good view of Sirocco as he wandered the enclosure.
Sirocco meets his fans
On the way back down the track we were treated to some high pitched kiwi calls that resonated around the sanctuary. Seeing a kākāpō and hearing kiwi calls all in the same night was a great experience, something I hope becomes more commonplace throughout New Zealand.
If you are in Wellington in the next few weeks I would recommend you head along and cross this unique experience off your bucket list.
Sirocco smiling for the camera
Sirocco at Zealandia:
Memories to last a lifetime – the night you met a kākāpō! Don’t miss this rare chance to meet Sirocco the kākāpō at Zealandia – just 10 minutes from Wellington city. Book your date now on the Zealandia website.
Skrraaaarrk! When it comes to choosing which bird to back you’ll never go wrong putting your money (or in this case vote) on kākāpō. However, in my official role as Spokesbird for Conservation, I thought I should be a little less biased. So today, filled with benevolence, I’m going to profile some of the lesser contenders for 2012 Bird of the Year.
And what better place to start than the native birds on that rare species – New Zealand’s bank notes…
Kākāpō and hoiho are more similar than you’d think: We’re one of the world’s rarest parrots and they’re one of the world’s rarest penguins. We mostly live on small islands around the south of New Zealand, and so do they (although they’ve got a colony on the Otago Peninsula just out of Dunedin too). We’re also both flight challenged, but make up for it with dashing good looks.
Kākāpō aren’t the biggest fans of water (although I have been known to take a dip), but whio are built to swim. While the fast flowing mountain streams are too rough for most ducks, whio love these hectic habitats and can easily negotiate rapids, boulders and logs in these swift currents. Whio are reluctant flyers, but I say flying is overrated anyway!
I may hold the title of New Zealand’s biggest show-off, but kārearea aren’t far behind. They can fly, and love to rub it in, with acrobatics and speeds of 230 km/hr. Boom! And with vision six times more powerful than a human and a terrifying scream, usually executed before descending on its prey, kārearea are a force to be reckoned with.
Even I don’t mind admitting, kōkako are beautiful singers. Once upon a time kākāpō and kōkako use to run into each other all the time, but the introduction of pests saw both our species start to disappear – the South Island sub-species hasn’t been seen since 1967 – skrraaaaarrk!
Like many of us natives, a few hundred years ago mohua were quite common. They weren’t built to survive rats and stoats though, and now this beautiful, bright bird is counted among New Zealand’s threatened species. Luckily, they’re quite good at reproducing (unlike a certain large, green, flightless parrot :<>) so, if we can get rid of the nasties that have caused their decline, then mohua have a good chance of recovery.
Mohua/yellowhead in a tree.
So there you have it, a quick profile of some of the competition that kākāpō are up against for Bird of the Year. Remember to vote before October 10 and let me know in the comments what your favourite New Zealand bird is (after the kākāpō of course!)
