NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather forecasts

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
    • Cooking the Books
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • What the Actual
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

Nora the kākāpō puts in effort to save species with mating marathon

NZ Herald
17 Jan, 2022 11:19 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Get it Nora. Photo / Dr Andrew Digby/Twitter

Get it Nora. Photo / Dr Andrew Digby/Twitter

We've come a long way, baby.

The shift in popular culture seen by shows such as the rebooted Sex and the City is just reflecting what nature has always known - that age is just a number when it comes to a woman's carnal appetites.

Enter Nora the kākāpō, the matriarch who has raised generations of the endangered parrots - and can still entertain two suitors in the one evening.

Conservation biologist Dr Andrew Digby shared the news on Twitter, revealing that although she is no spring parrot, Nora can still keep up with the pace.

"Even though she's an old kākāpō, Nora found the energy to mate with two males last night - including for 83 minutes with Guapo!" Digby breathlessly announced.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"She produced chicks in 1981, and is still going strong."

Even though she’s an old #kakapo, Nora found energy to mate with two males last night - including for 83 minutes with Guapo! She produced chicks in 1981, and is still going… #kakapo2022 #kakapo #conservation pic.twitter.com/Uurh17SjSW

— Dr Andrew Digby (@takapodigs) January 17, 2022

It is no surprise that, given New Zealanders' deep love for the quirky parrot, the tweet was soon flooded with responses.

"OMG Nora, aren't you bloody tired?" asked one concerned commenter.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Geddit Nora," was another succinct response.

One long-suffering husband shared that his wife had demanded to be introduced to Guapo.

Another kākāpo tragic noted that she couldn't help "reading these kakapo mating updates in a Geordie Shore recap voice".

Digby and others involved with the breeding programme regularly share updates on the breeding females' scorecards (go Pearl!).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kakapo Recovery (@kakapo_recovery)

Kākāpō breeding is a notoriously tricky business and relies heavily on seasonal conditions - and the small gene pool of the recovering population of the flightless parrots.

Recent innovations have seen success for the Department of Conservation's Kākāpō Recovery Programme, which has worked with Meridian and Ngāi Tahu to develop technological solutions to the many problems faced by the birds.

Nora, a life under the microscope

Nora's recent efforts are the latest in a four-decade breeding history that goes back to 1981.

DoC shared her life story in 2020, revealing just how integral she has been to the ongoing survival of her species.

She was found on Rakiura in July 1980, just three months after the first female kākāpō was found on the island.

Named by American biologist Margaret Shepard, Nora became the first kākāpō to be seen nesting in likely over 100 years when she laid eggs in 1981.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

She successfully raised two chicks that year: Adler and Zephyr.

Sadly, Adler disappeared shortly after fledging but Zephyr went on to become a kākāpō mum herself.

It was likely Rangi who fathered those chicks but he moved on and Lionel entered the picture.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kakapo Recovery (@kakapo_recovery)

Poor Lionel had "the worst sperm deformities ever seen in a kākāpō" and their union did not produce any chicks, leaving Nora to be a fantastic foster mum instead.

She had shifted to predator-free Whenua Hou island and was able to enjoy family life without predation from pest animals.

Her luck changed in 2016 when she hooked up with the dashing Blades, who fathered Kōtiu and Matangi.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

After Blades came Tūtoko, then Sinbad.

And she's still not done yet.

Go Nora!

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Lifestyle

'You're the best': Jacinda Ardern, NZ leaders celebrate Mother's Day with tributes

11 May 08:09 AM
Premium
Lifestyle

The complex emotions surrounding Mother's Day for many Kiwis

11 May 03:19 AM
Lifestyle

Words of wisdom: Parenting tips from seasoned Kiwi mums

11 May 01:00 AM

Sponsored: Top tier tiles - faux or refresh

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

'You're the best': Jacinda Ardern, NZ leaders celebrate Mother's Day with tributes

'You're the best': Jacinda Ardern, NZ leaders celebrate Mother's Day with tributes

11 May 08:09 AM

Several MPs used the occasion to point out the passing of the Pay Equity Amendment Bill.

Premium
The complex emotions surrounding Mother's Day for many Kiwis

The complex emotions surrounding Mother's Day for many Kiwis

11 May 03:19 AM
Words of wisdom: Parenting tips from seasoned Kiwi mums

Words of wisdom: Parenting tips from seasoned Kiwi mums

11 May 01:00 AM
Easy cafe-style French toast with brioche, bacon and berries

Easy cafe-style French toast with brioche, bacon and berries

10 May 11:00 PM
Sponsored: How much is too much?
sponsored

Sponsored: How much is too much?

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP