page_title: South Island takahē
section_title: Future efforts for protection
hierarchical_section_title: South Island takahē / Status and conservation / Future efforts for protection
context_page_description: The takahē, also known as the South Island takahē or notornis, is a flightless bird indigenous to New Zealand, and the largest living member of the rail family. First encountered by Europeans in 1847, just four specimens were collected in the 19th century. After the final bird was captured in 1898, and no more were to be found, the species was presumed extinct. Fifty years later, however, after a carefully planned search, takahē were dramatically rediscovered in 1948 by Geoffrey Orbell in an isolated valley in the South Island's Murchison Mountains. The species is now managed by the New Zealand Department of Conservation, whose Takahē Recovery Programme maintains populations on several offshore islands as well as Takahē Valley. The species has now been reintroduced to a second mainland site in Kahurangi National Park. Although takahē are still a threatened species, the species' NZTCS status was downgraded in 2016 from Nationally Critical to Nationally Vulnerable. The population is 418 and is growing by 10 per cent a year.
context_section_description: The original recovery strategies and goals set in the early 1980s, both long-term and short-term, are now well under way.
  The programme to move takahē to predator-free island refuges, where the birds also receive supplementary feeding, began in 1984. Takahē can now be found on five small islands; Maud Island (Marlborough Sounds), Mana Island (off Wellington's west coast), Kapiti Island (off Wellington's west coast), Tiritiri Matangi Island (Hauraki Gulf) and Motutapu Island (Hauraki Gulf). The Department of Conservation also runs a captive breeding and rearing programme at the Burwood Breeding Centre near Te Anau which consists of five breeding pairs. Chicks are reared with minimal human contact. The offspring of the captive birds are used for new island releases and to add to the wild population in the Murchison Mountains. The Department of Conservation also manages wild takahē nests to boost the birds' recovery. Surplus eggs from wild nests are taken to the Burwood Breeding Centre.
  An important management development has been the stringent control of deer in the Murchison Mountains and other takahē areas of Fiordland National Park. Following the introduction of deer hunting by helicopter, deer numbers have decreased dramatically and alpine vegetation is now recovering from years of heavy browsing. This improvement in its habitat has helped to increase takahē breeding success and survival. Current research aims to measure the impact of attacks by stoats and thus decide whether stoats are a significant problem requiring management.
caption: Takahē released at Maungatautari Restoration Project ecological island, Waikato district, North Island in June 2006.
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