Motorists warned to be wary of low-flying kereru

By Anabelle Jackman

Naturally fermenting fruit is thought to be the cause of a rise in kereru vs car incidents in Invercargill.

A bird sanctuary on the outskirts of the city has seen more injured pigeons than usual being brought in by motorists this autumn, after the low-flying birds have crashed into cars.

“We’ve had 24 in the last year, but of that just under a third would be from road injuries,” says May Evans, who runs Bush Haven Sanctuary.

Kereru expert Tabitha Becroft says it is the autumn fruit the birds gorge on that can prove their downfall.

“They are heavy with the fruit and so when they take off are flying low,” she says.

Ms Becroft suspects the naturally fermenting fruit maybe the reason for the birds’ wobbly take-offs.

“They probably get a bit drunk or something,” she says.

Now Ms Evans and her husband Russell want warning signs put up around Otatara, alerting motorists to the low flying birds.

“Even if we can save the life of three or four birds – or even less, it would be magic,” says Russell Evans.

Their hard work is for good reason.

It is estimated the kereru population decreases by 20 percent every decade. For this reasons, they are still a protected species under the Wildlife Act – meaning harsh penalties for anyone who kills a kereru.

A group of five Norwegian hunters were last week charged under the Act for shooting a kereru while holidaying in New Zealand.

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