7 Mar 2009

More kakapo chicks hatch

6:32 am on 7 March 2009

The arrival of five new kakapo chicks in the past week has nudged the total population of the endangered bird close to 100.

So far this season seven chicks have hatched, bringing the number of the flightless parrots to 98.

Kakapo operations ranger Jo Ledington says the birds have laid 39 eggs on Codfish Island in Southland although it is not yet known whether all are fertile.