thetuatara– a reptilethat resembles a
lizardbutwhoseclosestrelative is an
animalthatwasaround at the time
ofthedinosaurs– hadbeen extinct
ontheNorthandSouth Islands for
overacentury.(Smallpopulations
survivedonoffshoreislands.)
Overthecourseofone evening
here,youcanseeatrio of tuatara;
CookStraitgiantwe–ta–s,cricket-like
vegetarianinsectsthesize of a ger-
bil;luminousglowworms blanketing
rockfaces;andanyoneof 40 native
birds– allbehindan8.6-kilometre
fencethatkeepsoutmammalian
predators.Butnothingcauses quite
theruckus,literallyand figurative-
ly,astheheavy-footed little spot-
tedkiwi,thesightofwhich sends a
torch-wieldingtourgroup scurrying
afteritthroughthebush.
PalmerandBlackdrive to the op-
positesideofthe490-hectare O–hope
ScenicReserve,jumpout of their
truck,andtrampinto the forest.
They’reheadingforthenest belong-
ingtoPouraiti,oneofBlack’s two
beneficiaries.Inaddition to spon-
soringthisbird,Blackhas spent the
betterpartofseveralnights trying
tointercepthischick.Tracking is
a gameofpatienceandluck. “We’d
ratherwaituntilDadis out,” says
Palmer. “If we put our hands in there
during the day, we run the risk of him
abandoning his second egg.”
Thanks to a transmitter on Pourai-
ti’s leg, Black and Palmer know how
much time he spends on and off the
nest and when the egg is close to
hatching. That combined with the
‘candling’ they conducted five days
prior – a kind of ultrasound per-
formed by shining a flashlight across
the top of the shell – makes the search
low-risk. They’re going in.
Palmer and Black smile at each
other; they’re relieved to find a fluffy
day-old chick rather than reliving the
sadness they felt earlier at Pea’s nest.
Black lifts the edge of the sleeve on
his jacket so the squeaking newborn
can plunge itself into darkness. As
Black keeps a tight grip on the bird’s
already fearsome claws, Palmer teas-
es him about losing track of Chick
One, which is still too small to wear
a transmitter. “You know kids,” Black
retorts. “Always leaving without tell-
ing you where they’re going.”
For now, at least they know Chick
Two is alive. And they will be back,
to name and study the young – and
gather new stories to inspire others
to protect New Zealand’s tenacious
icon.On Fine Art
I droppeda boxof spaghetti on the ground and accidentally
graduated from Art School. @MR_DRINKSONME98 april 2020
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