Keep watch for native parrots

JASON OXENHAM PLANTING FOOD: Nor-west residents are encouraged to plant trees to help kaka thrive in their natural environment.

Auckland - Follow the progress of the entertaining kaka by checking out the new Facebook page of KakaWatchNZ.

Nor-west residents can help the large parrot by planting puriri trees in frost-free areas for a year-round food supply and for cavity nest holes in the future. Other native flowering or fruiting trees are also good food sources.

Control stoats, cats, rats and possums in your garden, bush, farm and neighbourhood as well as supporting nor-west restoration groups doing mammalian pest control in native bush.

The birds are mainly diurnal but are active at night during fine weather or a full moon.

Flocks of boisterous kaka gather in the early morning and late evening to socialise – their amusing antics and raucous voice led the Maori to refer to them as chattering and gossiping.

KakaWatchNZ encourages people to contact them when they see the bird because they are updating a database of kaka sightings in the region.

The project began in 2007 with sightings from the Auckland region, and expanded in 2008 to include the Coromandel Peninsula and the islands of the Hauraki Gulf. All the sightings are entered into a database. The information is used to build online sighting maps is accessible to all.

Kaka behaviour, including social interactions and feeding, and information on tree species used for roosting and feeding are being analysed.

Visit www.kakawatchnz.org and login to Facebook and go to www.facebook.com/pages/KakaWatchNZ-for-wild-Kaka-fans/249715698393339.