It’s been a huge couple of years for takahē at Orokonui and across the motu. Last year for the first time in many years both the takahē pairs in the sanctuary had chicks. With Waimarie and Bennet raising two juveniles in the upper sanctuary. Meanwhile at the valley floor Jessie and Bounty raised their first chick as well. All three chicks have done well and are now as large if not bigger than their parents. With support from Kāti Huirapa Rūnaka ki Puketeraki, mana whenua of Orokonui we now have new names for these three.
Jessie and Bounty’s chick is now Omimi, her bands are Orange/Red – Orange/Metal. Waimarie and Bennet’s two chicks are Maraekura and Maukoroa. Maraekura can be distinguished with her bands being Green/Green – Black/Metal. For Maukoroa his bands are Orange/White – Red/Metal. These name relate to the local landscape around the sanctuary and up the coast to Karitane. They mean wherever these young takahē end up once they leave Orokonui for the next part of their adventure they will carry a bit of their whakapapa and where they grew up with them wherever they end up.
Takahē at Orokonui are part of the wider Takahē Recovery Programme run by the Department of Conservation. Each year young birds from the sanctuary are moved to be part of wild populations like that now established in the Rees valley. Three Orokonui born takahē have been released there including Ihaka who hatched in Orokonui in 2023 and this summer was recorded raising their own chicks in the wild. It is a privilege for the sanctuary and our team to be part of the lives of these birds and their story as they return to landscapes they have been lost from.
The best way to see takahē at Orokonui is to explore the upper sanctuary in the morning. Especially around the takahē supplementary feeding area. To see the valley floor whānau you can continue past the tallest tree and you might get a glimpse of them lurking in the grasses, this group isn’t as easy to spot as those in the upper sanctuary though.