Bird count shows kereru in force in south

Scientists need years of data to know how kereru are doing.

Dunedin has been identified as a new kereru "hotspot" in this year's Great Kereru Count.

The annual 10-day count, the country's biggest "citizen science project", finished on Sunday and organisers said there were nearly 6000 observations of 13,573 wood pigeons.

The final figures will be known on Friday but some trends can already be seen.

Most sightings were recorded in Wellington, Auckland, Nelson/Tasman and Dunedin.

"A new kereru hotspot this year is Dunedin, which is exciting," a WWF New Zealand spokeswoman said.

Good numbers were also seen at Waiheke Island, Whangarei, Taranaki, Bay of Plenty, New Plymouth, Palmerston North, the West Coast and Christchurch. There were 122 observations of flocks of 10 or more.

Numbers were up on last year, but lower than in 2015. However, organisers are not worried by fluctuations in the count, which started in 2014.

"To get a clear picture of how kereru are doing, scientists from Victoria University of Wellington require at least seven to 10 years' worth of solid data to analyse," the spokeswoman said.

"Observations may fluctuate a little from year to year but it's the overall picture we are looking for. Over time, we hope to discover whether numbers are increasing or decreasing and whether populations are faring better or worse in some parts ... "

Kereru are not considered endangered but are important for forests and kereru count organisers want to build a picture of how they're doing nationally.

The count is a partnership between WWF New Zealand, Kereru Discovery, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington City Council, and NatureWatch NZ.

- NZ Newswire