Become a New Zealand falcon volunteer
Karearea chicks. Photo courtesy of Wingspan.
Three New Zealand falcon chicks have hatched and are soon to be the first ever kārearea released into a New Zealand urban environment. And volunteers are required to help monitor their transition.
Last week three endangered kārearea (New Zealand falcon) chicks hatched at Wingspan, the National Bird of Prey Centre, in Rotorua.
These chicks will be transferred to a nesting box on the roof of Rotorua Museum on 16 December. In early January the nesting box, known as a hack box, will be opened and the young falcons will be free to go.
This landmark initiative between Rotorua Museum and Wingspan will be the first ever urban release, not just of the New Zealand falcon, but of any endangered species in New Zealand.
In the days and weeks following the release, museum visitors and visitors to Rotorua's wider Government Gardens environment will have the rare opportunity to see the young falcons up close as they learn to fend for themselves. Over this period, Rotorua Museum is calling for volunteers to help monitor the young falcons.
Volunteers will be trained by both Wingspan and Department of Conservation staff on how to monitor the birds and how to report sightings and activities of the young falcons.
For more information on being a volunteer please contact Julie Parsons on 07 351 7823 or email julie.parsons@rdc.govt.nz
From 16 December, when the chicks are placed in the hack box, and for the weeks following release, Rotorua Museum will have a special display 'On the Wing' about kārearea, the urban release project, and the work of Wingspan.