Kea surviving 1080 drops

A study into whether kea are being killed by drops of 1080 poison has found no deaths so far among the kea being monitored.

Last year concerns were raised about the poison, used to control pests and predators, after seven kea died at Fox Glacier.

The Department of Conservation (DOC) study monitored 13 kea which were caught and tagged at Kahurangi National Park, Tasman, in June.

A month after 1080 aerial drops in the area all 13 were still alive.

DOC scientific officer Josh Kemp said the focus would now shift to kea nesting results over the next two years to see if they were benefiting from the pest control.

"We would expect kea nests to do well in the Mt Arthur area this year as aerial 1080 operations achieve large reductions in numbers of possums, rats and stoats that prey on eggs and chicks."

- NZPA