McIntyre: In the far south of Fiordland, where chalky cliffs meet raging sea - the name Richard Henry is legendary.
Allan: He could well be a hundred years old, but he's a minimum of 37, And he could be much, much older than that.
McIntyre: 27 years ago Richard Henry was plucked from Fiordland at a time when it was plagued by predators. Richard Henry was the only survivor.
Allan: He's pretty. He's big.
McIntyre: Handsome?
Allan: Oh he's handsome, he's quiet as a rule.
McIntyre: Sort of Sean Connery type
Allan: Absolutely not that I'd know.
McIntyre: Now Richard Henry is the great hope for a new generation on Chalky Island, Fiordland.
Allan: Its a pretty special time to have him coming back here.
McIntyre: But before Richard Henry returns, we have a journey of our own to make from Invercargill, to the islands of the deep south -- a journey with the man whose vision it was to make Chalky safe for kakapo - Allan Munn and his devoted assistant Heidi.
Allan: Nothing has sort of got to me like this thing.. I feel a responsibility to the people that employ me the tax payer of New Zealand and the people of New Zealand to do my work well. I feel very privileged to have had a close association with one of the world's great creatures.
McIntyre: And almost all those great creatures now live here - Codfish Island - Whenua Hou - off the western coast of Stewart Island. Its a sanctuary set up to encourage breeding.. This year 25 new chicks have brought the world's kakapo population to 86. Nine birds from Codfish Island are about to be gathered up and taken to Chalky. The females, specially selected to meet Richard Henry.
Allan: There's some absolutely lovely specimens coming across for him.
McIntyre: Girls he hasn't seen before?
Allan: Yes, girls he hasn't seen before. Get in here Heidi!
McIntyre: Why are you taking them off the island?
Allan: Its quite exciting time for us really because the birds have bred up to such an extent -- and they're starting to -- some of the males are taking a dislike to the new chicks and that's one reason we probably need to get a few off.
Allan: Get in here, Heidi
McIntyre: Kakapo owe a lot to Allan Munn - He helped save them from extinction. In the eighties he was part of a team that rescued the last few dozen birds on cat infested Stewart Island ... Birds that helped build the population that now exists here on Codfish. One single kakapo sent him on a mission.
Allan: Finding that bird in 1983 -- Solomon his name was -- and I can remember his band number R360360 to this day -- you know finding him dead, killed by a cat was, you know it was a life changing experience really. We're quite close to the bird here, Ros.
McIntyre: With the help of Heidi and a radio receiver, he's moving in on Sandra, one of the originals from Stewart Island.
McIntyre: Whereabouts was she, Allan?
Allan: Just parked up there in front of the dog's nose there see.
McIntyre: Sandra, incredibly calm, is an adult bird, at least in her twenties. Having hatched two chicks she's an excellent prospect for Richard Henry - and an excellent catch.
McIntyre: Does Heidi get a reward for that?
Allan: No finding birds is her job you don't want her too excited. She just finds them and thats her job.
McIntyre: Not even a pat on the head?
Allan: Oh all right, a pat on the head. Good dog.
McIntyre: Faint praise for the dog that's the best in the business. She's made around 200 hundred catches.
Allan: Without dogs these birds'd be pretty much extinct now
McIntyre: But there's another young female to be found.
Allan: We'll just leave Sandra here... That'll be all right...We'll just be a few minutes and go and catch Hoki
McIntyre: We can smell Hokis strong musky scent -- a dead giveaway if predators were here.
Allan: Janet, the bird's just here somewhere the dog's set on it. I just can't see it yet.
McIntyre: Not blessed with self-defence mechanisms, the birds can't fly, and Hoki is likely to freeze when approached.
Allan: Just go quietly and slowly and pick her up.
McIntyre: And just when she's safely out of sight in a good little hidey hole... Hoki lets us know where she is.
Allan: Females have a habit of doing that, I don't know why they do that. They'll bite you most times. Its just a matter of just quietly reaching in, not panicking and just getting hold of the bird gently but firmly and getting her out so you don't do her too much damage, or any damage.
McIntyre: Not exactly business class for this national treasure - Hoki, aged 10 was the first bird reared by hand.
Allan: Carry these back down to the hut now, Janet. There's your one.... I think that's Sandra, that one, so just don't bash it on anything. It's a good feeling when you've caught them isn't it... It's exciting catching new birds, saving them from the cats, that's really good.
McIntyre: This is a very rare privilege indeed to be part of Sandra's journey. She's about to leave here home of 11 years. Now she's going to be returned to the natural home of the kakapo to Fiordland and hopefully be part of a community that is going to prosper there. 130 kilometres to the northwest Chalky Island, Fiordland -- as desolate as it gets. There's nothing more here than a doc hut under renovation -- the handyman is also the senior scientist, Dr. Graeme Elliott.
Graeme: What we expect over the next few months is that we'll dump them on the island and they'll just rocket around all over the place figuring out where the food resources are and where the good nesting sites are. And hopefully they'll all settle down by next summer, they'll be in good condition and ready to breed.
McIntyre: How important is Richard Henry in this plan
Graeme: Well he's very important, because all the rest of the birds weve got now come from Stewart Island. So Richard Henrys the last of the mainland birds, and he came from Fiordland, not that far from here. And hes slightly different in the way he behaves, in his colouration and things like that. And we need genetic variability in our population. So were putting him here with a good selection of very attractive females and a bunch of old crocks of males that we think he can out-compete
McIntyre: Tell me what he does.
Graeme: He's got these big air sacs in his chest and around his shoulders and he blows himselfup, and sits there and goes boom, boom, boom like this.
McIntyre: A subtle sound, the call of the male kakapo - but it can be heard for five kilometres .
Graeme: He just uses that as an advertisement for here am I, I'm a marvellous male, come and mate with me.
McIntyre: What kind of boom does Richard Henry have?
Graeme: Richard Henry's proved to be quite attractive because he's mated once before on Maude Island when the females there had a choice of three or four boys who were all furiously booming away, and they chose Richard Henry so we're optimistic that Richard Henry's got a good boom.
McIntyre: And so it begins -- the flight of the flightless. Kakapo - 14 in total - ferried on to Chalky from Stewart Island in the southeast - and from Maude Island in Marlborough sounds, the VIP party.
Woman: That's Richard Henrys daughter. And this is Richard Henry.
McIntyre: Each box - represents an investment of hundreds of thousands of dollars. It's expensive, bringing a species back from the brink of extinction. Sponsorship has helped . This work, led by Allan Munn to eradicate stoats from the island, to make it safe for kakapo. this work alone has taken four years...
McIntyre: There would be New Zealanders who would think why should we care about a fat parrot.
Allan: Yes and I think those people were sort of more common 50 years ago that they are today, actually. I know very few people who think we're wasting our time
McIntyre: One by one kakapo take their first steps on new soil. Breathtakingly beautiful one moment, perfectly blended The next. So this is a very important moment for you, Allan?
Allan: Well yes it is. After all the effort of over a hundred people over the past 20 years its marvellous to see this marvellous old bird coming back to Fiordland. Fantastic.
McIntyre: Do you think he'll be aware that he's back in Fiordland?
Allan: Who knows, who knows. There he is. Isnt he beautiful
McIntyre: Very few people have ever seen Richard Henry, let alone held him.
McIntyre: He's so gentle. It's incredible that he'll just sit there so calmly like that.
Allan: You've got one of the last Fiordland kakapo.
McIntyre: I feel very privileged. He's got a strong aroma.
Allan: What we want him to do is to dominate the island and be the loudest and best booming bird, and we want the females to mate with him as opposed to one of the lesser mortals. See how he's closing his eyes now. He's sleepy. We should let him go now.
McIntyre: Let him go?
Allan: Yeah, lets let him go.
McIntyre: Richard Henry, the hearts and minds of all New Zealanders are with you.
Allan: Just sit him down there and hell be fine.
McIntyre: And he lets me know it really is time. Go forth Richard Henry. We look forward to news of Richard Henry junior.
Allan: He could well be a hundred years old, but he's a minimum of 37, And he could be much, much older than that.
McIntyre: 27 years ago Richard Henry was plucked from Fiordland at a time when it was plagued by predators. Richard Henry was the only survivor.
Allan: He's pretty. He's big.
McIntyre: Handsome?
Allan: Oh he's handsome, he's quiet as a rule.
McIntyre: Sort of Sean Connery type
Allan: Absolutely not that I'd know.
McIntyre: Now Richard Henry is the great hope for a new generation on Chalky Island, Fiordland.
Allan: Its a pretty special time to have him coming back here.
McIntyre: But before Richard Henry returns, we have a journey of our own to make from Invercargill, to the islands of the deep south -- a journey with the man whose vision it was to make Chalky safe for kakapo - Allan Munn and his devoted assistant Heidi.
Allan: Nothing has sort of got to me like this thing.. I feel a responsibility to the people that employ me the tax payer of New Zealand and the people of New Zealand to do my work well. I feel very privileged to have had a close association with one of the world's great creatures.
McIntyre: And almost all those great creatures now live here - Codfish Island - Whenua Hou - off the western coast of Stewart Island. Its a sanctuary set up to encourage breeding.. This year 25 new chicks have brought the world's kakapo population to 86. Nine birds from Codfish Island are about to be gathered up and taken to Chalky. The females, specially selected to meet Richard Henry.
Allan: There's some absolutely lovely specimens coming across for him.
McIntyre: Girls he hasn't seen before?
Allan: Yes, girls he hasn't seen before. Get in here Heidi!
McIntyre: Why are you taking them off the island?
Allan: Its quite exciting time for us really because the birds have bred up to such an extent -- and they're starting to -- some of the males are taking a dislike to the new chicks and that's one reason we probably need to get a few off.
Allan: Get in here, Heidi
McIntyre: Kakapo owe a lot to Allan Munn - He helped save them from extinction. In the eighties he was part of a team that rescued the last few dozen birds on cat infested Stewart Island ... Birds that helped build the population that now exists here on Codfish. One single kakapo sent him on a mission.
Allan: Finding that bird in 1983 -- Solomon his name was -- and I can remember his band number R360360 to this day -- you know finding him dead, killed by a cat was, you know it was a life changing experience really. We're quite close to the bird here, Ros.
McIntyre: With the help of Heidi and a radio receiver, he's moving in on Sandra, one of the originals from Stewart Island.
McIntyre: Whereabouts was she, Allan?
Allan: Just parked up there in front of the dog's nose there see.
McIntyre: Sandra, incredibly calm, is an adult bird, at least in her twenties. Having hatched two chicks she's an excellent prospect for Richard Henry - and an excellent catch.
McIntyre: Does Heidi get a reward for that?
Allan: No finding birds is her job you don't want her too excited. She just finds them and thats her job.
McIntyre: Not even a pat on the head?
Allan: Oh all right, a pat on the head. Good dog.
McIntyre: Faint praise for the dog that's the best in the business. She's made around 200 hundred catches.
Allan: Without dogs these birds'd be pretty much extinct now
McIntyre: But there's another young female to be found.
Allan: We'll just leave Sandra here... That'll be all right...We'll just be a few minutes and go and catch Hoki
McIntyre: We can smell Hokis strong musky scent -- a dead giveaway if predators were here.
Allan: Janet, the bird's just here somewhere the dog's set on it. I just can't see it yet.
McIntyre: Not blessed with self-defence mechanisms, the birds can't fly, and Hoki is likely to freeze when approached.
Allan: Just go quietly and slowly and pick her up.
McIntyre: And just when she's safely out of sight in a good little hidey hole... Hoki lets us know where she is.
Allan: Females have a habit of doing that, I don't know why they do that. They'll bite you most times. Its just a matter of just quietly reaching in, not panicking and just getting hold of the bird gently but firmly and getting her out so you don't do her too much damage, or any damage.
McIntyre: Not exactly business class for this national treasure - Hoki, aged 10 was the first bird reared by hand.
Allan: Carry these back down to the hut now, Janet. There's your one.... I think that's Sandra, that one, so just don't bash it on anything. It's a good feeling when you've caught them isn't it... It's exciting catching new birds, saving them from the cats, that's really good.
McIntyre: This is a very rare privilege indeed to be part of Sandra's journey. She's about to leave here home of 11 years. Now she's going to be returned to the natural home of the kakapo to Fiordland and hopefully be part of a community that is going to prosper there. 130 kilometres to the northwest Chalky Island, Fiordland -- as desolate as it gets. There's nothing more here than a doc hut under renovation -- the handyman is also the senior scientist, Dr. Graeme Elliott.
Graeme: What we expect over the next few months is that we'll dump them on the island and they'll just rocket around all over the place figuring out where the food resources are and where the good nesting sites are. And hopefully they'll all settle down by next summer, they'll be in good condition and ready to breed.
McIntyre: How important is Richard Henry in this plan
Graeme: Well he's very important, because all the rest of the birds weve got now come from Stewart Island. So Richard Henrys the last of the mainland birds, and he came from Fiordland, not that far from here. And hes slightly different in the way he behaves, in his colouration and things like that. And we need genetic variability in our population. So were putting him here with a good selection of very attractive females and a bunch of old crocks of males that we think he can out-compete
McIntyre: Tell me what he does.
Graeme: He's got these big air sacs in his chest and around his shoulders and he blows himselfup, and sits there and goes boom, boom, boom like this.
McIntyre: A subtle sound, the call of the male kakapo - but it can be heard for five kilometres .
Graeme: He just uses that as an advertisement for here am I, I'm a marvellous male, come and mate with me.
McIntyre: What kind of boom does Richard Henry have?
Graeme: Richard Henry's proved to be quite attractive because he's mated once before on Maude Island when the females there had a choice of three or four boys who were all furiously booming away, and they chose Richard Henry so we're optimistic that Richard Henry's got a good boom.
McIntyre: And so it begins -- the flight of the flightless. Kakapo - 14 in total - ferried on to Chalky from Stewart Island in the southeast - and from Maude Island in Marlborough sounds, the VIP party.
Woman: That's Richard Henrys daughter. And this is Richard Henry.
McIntyre: Each box - represents an investment of hundreds of thousands of dollars. It's expensive, bringing a species back from the brink of extinction. Sponsorship has helped . This work, led by Allan Munn to eradicate stoats from the island, to make it safe for kakapo. this work alone has taken four years...
McIntyre: There would be New Zealanders who would think why should we care about a fat parrot.
Allan: Yes and I think those people were sort of more common 50 years ago that they are today, actually. I know very few people who think we're wasting our time
McIntyre: One by one kakapo take their first steps on new soil. Breathtakingly beautiful one moment, perfectly blended The next. So this is a very important moment for you, Allan?
Allan: Well yes it is. After all the effort of over a hundred people over the past 20 years its marvellous to see this marvellous old bird coming back to Fiordland. Fantastic.
McIntyre: Do you think he'll be aware that he's back in Fiordland?
Allan: Who knows, who knows. There he is. Isnt he beautiful
McIntyre: Very few people have ever seen Richard Henry, let alone held him.
McIntyre: He's so gentle. It's incredible that he'll just sit there so calmly like that.
Allan: You've got one of the last Fiordland kakapo.
McIntyre: I feel very privileged. He's got a strong aroma.
Allan: What we want him to do is to dominate the island and be the loudest and best booming bird, and we want the females to mate with him as opposed to one of the lesser mortals. See how he's closing his eyes now. He's sleepy. We should let him go now.
McIntyre: Let him go?
Allan: Yeah, lets let him go.
McIntyre: Richard Henry, the hearts and minds of all New Zealanders are with you.
Allan: Just sit him down there and hell be fine.
McIntyre: And he lets me know it really is time. Go forth Richard Henry. We look forward to news of Richard Henry junior.