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There are only 236 of them left on Earth. Every single one has a name. The kākāpō is the world's heaviest parrot - a mossy green, owl-faced bird the size of a small dog that cannot fly, may live to 90 years, and only breeds every 2 to 4 years when New Zealand's rimu trees produce enough fruit to trigger the urge. Rats. Cats. Stoats. Humans clearing forests. The kākāpō never evolved to outrun any of them. By 1995, 51 birds remained. Scientists, rangers, and Ngāi Tahu - the Māori people who have always known this bird as taonga, a treasure—evacuated every last one to predator-free islands. Each bird got a transmitter. Each nest watched around the clock. This past February 14th, the first kākāpō chick in four years hatched. They named her Tīwhiri. By spring, 59 chicks had been born. 236 birds. Every name known. Every nest watched. Who's counting down the days until the rimu trees fruit again? 🦜 #DemsUnited #Nature