king of the forest
Our winter 11 range is inspired by Codfish Island / Whenua Hou, meaning new land; the home to half our remaining kakapo population. It is here, while on a volunteer mission to monitor these precious parrots, that I was filled with so much inspiration and peacefulness I wanted it to last forever.
What better way to stretch out the bliss than to share and express that inspiration in the next chalkydigits range? I hoped to create a collection in which all New Zealanders' could see the beauty of our land; the exquisite and lush flora, its textures and details, and also our precious kakapo; its beauty, its character, our hope for its future and its interesting and tragic history.
(Liz Collins/Chalkydigits founder)
At chalkydigits, we have developed quite a crush on this very cheeky but endearing creature. The story of New Zealand’s precious parrot, the kakapo, is really warming the cockles of our heart this winter and this is our way of sharing that joy with you - that’s why we have created our entire winter range around them and their unique home.
If you look closely at the Codfish Island images above, you will be able to see where the inspiration for our graphics originated. These birds really are a national treasure; we hope that after learning more about them, you think so too.
midnight rambler
Kakapo means night parrot and is a very befitting name for this midnight rambler, the only nocturnal parrot in the world. Our kakapo is a bird of many other unique traits too; the heaviest parrot, the only flightless parrot and possibly also the longest living bird in the world – they really are a star on the world stage! Some of the kakapo’s curious traits have contributed to its decline too, such as it’s peculiar habit of freezing, hoping no one will notice it, when threatened – with their perfectly camouflaged feathers, this would have been an effective defense against their original predator, the Haast Eagle, but is sadly no match for the ones we have introduced.
It’s all about the BOOM, baby!
Not meaning to gossip, but these vegetarians have quite a remarkable love life; in fact, their breeding performance is really something to see. The male kakapo sits in a special bowl he has scraped out of the earth, fills his chest pouch with air and emits an almighty BOOM! This carries up to five kilometre’s and attracts girlfriends from all over the land. The She-birds wander on over and check out his noisy display, deciding if he is a good match for them. It really is all about the BOOM for these blokes, hehe. (There is, of course, THAT video from the BBC’s “Last Chance To See” doing the rounds on youtube at the moment. Hope the kakapo are receiving royalties, is all we can say…)
solo parenting….
Unfortunately for this species, the papa of new chicks is not much help on the home front. In fact, all the domestic chick-raising duties fall to mama-bird, and so while she is out sourcing snacks in the wee small hours, her brood is left home alone and very vulnerable. This is why breeding these birds on predator-free islands such as Whenua Hou is so vital to ensuring the continuation of this amazing species.
will the real Richard Henry please stand up?
The original Richard Henry was a hard-working pioneer in the field of New Zealand conservation over 100 years ago. His concern about the rapid decline of our native birds due to predation saw him set up an isolated home in the remote Southwest fiords, where his days were spent capturing kakapo and kiwi from the mainland and transferring them to the (pest-free) safety of outlying islands. Amazingly, he managed to transfer hundreds of kakapo in a few short years, but by 1900, the dreaded stoats were arriving on the islands and wiping out the vulnerable birds. So sadly, Richard Henry’s hard work was all in vain.
Richard Henry the Second – another great pioneer
His legacy does live on, however, in the name of the somewhat ‘elder statesman’ of the kakapo tribe; meet Richard Henry, a male kakapo captured in Fiordland in 1975 and the only remaining member of the species originating from the South Island. His distinct genes play an important part in the future conservation of kakapo, and he already has shared his ‘talents’ with the rest of the exclusive kakapo clan: he fathered three of it’s newest members in ‘98. Since the dismal lows of the ‘90’s there have been several highly successful breeding seasons, greatly boosting their chances of survival. While these charming creatures are not yet out of the woods, so to speak, there is hope now that they will be around to meet our great-grandchildren yet.
R.I.P. Richard Henry
Before releasing our Winter 11 range, there was an unhappy development in the kakapo kingdom; our nearest and dearest, Richard Henry ll, sadly passed away over the summer. He will be sorely missed by those who knew and loved him, and those that hold out high hopes for these critically endangered parrots. If you feel moved to assist their cause, please sign up to lend a hand or make a donation at www.kakaporecovery.org.nz
Lost Paradise
Manaia Native Habitat / Little River Campground
Though Whenua Hou (Codfish Island) was the inspiration for our Winter 11 range we knew we couldn’t photograph our catalogue there so we had to look closer to home; Manaia Native Habitat in the Little River Campground is a stunning sanctuary basically right on our doorstep. With the clear, bubbling brook and so-cute collection of retro baches set in amongst the lush native forest we felt like we were in a lost paradise. A pair of tui (very rare in these parts) even turned up to check us out. What bliss! This is surely testament to the great restoration work happening at Manaia. You can check out the choice accommodation styles at www.littlerivercampground.co.nz
If you feel inspired to help conserve our precious species or environment, then check out local conservation projects going on in your area and lend a hand. Every little bit we do helps and like us, you could find yourself in a nearby and secret pocket of paradise-most-perfect too!
the cheeky south island robin is now back home
on chalky island - thanks to you!
In March of 2010 some extremely excited chalkydigits crew made their way to the deep south of New Zealand for a very important mission; after 100 long years devoid of south island robins upon chalky island, these cheeky little guys were about to come home. The chalkydigits crew rounded up some capable individuals and after a spot of bird-catching on various pest-free islands in the fiords, made a mercy mission dash down the coast bearing their special cargo: boxes of vulnerable birds.
With us, we had Jeni Pelvin of Dunedin, the lucky winner of our Summer 09.10 Chalky Island Trip competition and Guy Frederick, an awesome photographer who visually documented our trip so we could show you upon our return.
This was a momentous occasion for the South Island Robin – and us – we were over the moon that we got to do a little bit for our precious environment – and get out of the office to experience our wild land! It has to be said; we owe you all a standing ovation for supporting our vision of protecting one of our vulnerable native treasures. To everyone that purchased one of our robin badges we rain thanks down upon you, as the project has been a huge success and we are thrilled to be able to restore the robin back to its home.
background
Chalky Island is a remote native bird sanctuary off the coast of Fiordland where some of New Zealand’s most vulnerable and endangered birds enjoy a safe harbour from dangerous predators. Chalky Island became the first ever island of its size to be successfully cleared of predators in 1990 and since then has remained free of invaders of the pesky and dangerous kind. It is now the ideal home for vulnerable and endangered native species like the South Island Robin.
The values reflected in the restoration of Chalky Island really resonate with ours – to nurture and support our local environment (and we have to admit we LOVE the name).
New Zealand’s South Island Robin numbers have been diminishing for a while now due to introduced predators on the mainland and we really wanted to help give this cheeky little bird a fighting chance so we crafted a wooden pin badge from which all proceeds have gone to funding their transfer to this sanctuary. Now these little cuties are back where they belong, home safe and sound, and we are free to dream up other exciting conservation projects you can all be a part of!
Many thanks, also, to the Fiordland Conservation Trust for making this possible.
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