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The Kakapo, an endangered species.
Nothing can prepare you for a meeting with a kākāpō. Not even an entire front page of them happily shagging a graying faux fro narrated by Stephen Fry. These weird creatures are, without doubt, one of the most remarkable birds in the world. But they need our help to survive.
One of the most notable features of the kākāpō, is its distinctive, musty odour. And then there’s the way it looks and behaves. Firstly, it's a parrot that looks like an owl, or maybe a giant budgie. Despite it's large flappy shaggy wings, it cannot fly. Instead, it walks, jumps and climbs around. Sometimes, the kākāpō will forget it can't fly, often when attempting to flee a predator. The kākāpō will then climb a tall tree and, just when it's actually safe, emit a heroic cry and jump into the air. Only to fall back down. It squawks like every over parrot, but the sound comes out more like a braying donkey, than an exotic bird. Weighing in at 1,4kg-2,2kg, the fattest parrot in the world, it is also one of the longer living ones at around 90 years. That's better than most people.
Unlike most people though, the kākāpō is highly endangered. There are less than 125 on the planet. There are probably a lot less living kākāpō, than there are gifs of it rumping heartily on the front page right now. I think, that since imgur has gotten so much joy out of this fantastic bird, it's is only fair that we return the favour and bring some joy back to kākāpōs themselves.
In the 1970s only 18 kākāpō were known to exist – all males. The species seemed doomed to extinction. But in 1977, a population of male and female kākāpō was discovered on Stewart Island, giving new hope for the survival of this precious bird. Since then, a small team of dedicated staff from the Department of Conservation have worked tirelessly to protect, manage and grow the kākāpō population.
These birds have been supported by volunteers and staff work year round ensuring the birds are safe, healthy and well fed. The aim of Kākāpō Recovery is to establish at least two managed populations of kākāpō and another self-sustaining population, each with at least 50 breeding aged females, in a protected habitat. Let's help them out.
Therefore, I am going to ask you to donate to help preserve this wonderful bird, so that coming generations can enjoy it as much as we do and have done these past 24 hours. Rare parrot means ENDANGERED parrot. Please help save this wonderful bird from extinction Even a dollar can help make a difference. There are so many of us and so few kākāpō. All donations go directly towards kākāpō recovery – That means food, incubators, health checks, nests, etc. Please visit this link and help out: http://kakaporecovery.org.nz/donate/
