Troublesome takahe: Motutapu is Alcatraz for Peti crim

Peti the takahe will join 17 others of her breed on Motutapu Island in the Hauraki Gulf.

Escape-prone takahe moving from Tawharanui Open Sanctuary on mainland to predator-free island.

She's shown the slick skills of famed prison escaper George Wilder in repeatedly busting out of her sanctuary - so now it's off to Alcatraz for Peti the trouble-making takahe.

After several brazen escapes, the bird's wandering ways have left rangers with no option but to shift her from Tawharanui Open Sanctuary to predator-free Motutapu Island this weekend.

The 5-year-old female was one of 10 critically endangered takahe introduced to the sanctuary in October as part of a secure breeding programme.

Illustration / Rod Emmerson

While her feathered friends were happy to stay put and find a mate to bed down with, restless Peti couldn't shake her wanderlust.

She soon roamed to the far east of the sanctuary, the far west and then the far south, before finally finding her way out the gate.

Sanctuary staff were notified of her break-out by cellphone alert and she was tracked down and released back into the park.

After three months of good behaviour, the rangers thought they'd seen the last of Peti's escape acts.

But two weeks ago, she was caught 50m away from the sanctuary's 2.5km predator-proof fence.

Rangers again found themselves having to march Peti back inside.

"We thought, yep, cool, job's done, but then last Tuesday evening, our resident ranger Maurice Puckett was sitting on his deck just outside the fence of the sanctuary when he saw a takahe wandering across the lawn," Auckland Council open sanctuary co-ordinator Matt Maitland said.

Again, Peti was ushered back inside the fence - and again she escaped, less than two hours later.

At that point, fed-up rangers placed her in a pen with food and water until they could figure out what to do next.

It was eventually decided Peti should join 17 other takahe on Motutapu Island - where there was no chance of eluding her minders.

Mr Maitland didn't think her a mischief-making escape-artist like Kiwi George Wilder, who became a national folk hero in the 1960s when he evaded police for almost eight months in three escapes from two New Zealand prisons.

George Wilder

"Who's to say that if she went out and had a look around, she wouldn't choose to come home - it's just that we can't afford to run the risk of having her exposed to vehicles, cats and dogs in the outside world."

Her safety was crucial as there are only about 270 takahe left - and just 58 breeding pairs.

Department of Conservation ranger Hazel Speed says she'll still be keeping an eye on her. "We've told Fullers not to let any takahe on to the ferry, ticket or no ticket."

Colourful characters

• There are only about 270 takahe left in New Zealand, making the flightless and colourful native species critically endangered.

• There is a wild population in the Murchison Mountains, Fiordland, and a second population spread over a number of pest-free locations such as Motutapu, Tiritiri Matangi and Tawharanui.

• Presently, there are around 58 breeding pairs at secure sites. The aim of the Takahe Recovery Programme is to see 125 breeding age pairs at appropriately managed secure sites.