Wild Sounds: Kākāpō Files II
Episodes
Kākāpō Files II 18 | Good Kākāpō Things Take Time
15 Jun 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Six months after this record-breaking kākāpō breeding season began, all 91 living chicks have fledged and left the nest. The chicks remain with the...
Kākāpō Files II 17 | Kākāpō Adoption Birds
18 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Half of the chicks from this record-breaking kākāpō breeding season have fledged and left their nests for good, but are still being fed by their mu...
Kākāpō Files II 16 | Kākāpō Chicks Growing Up
04 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The tally of confirmed living kākāpō chicks goes down with two further deaths, but gets a welcome boost with the confirmation of a living chick in ...
Kākāpō Files II 15 | Kākāpō Island Diary
20 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Alison Ballance spends a week on Whenua Hou/Codfish Island, one of three kākāpō breeding islands. She follows rangers from DOC’s Kākāpō Recove...
Kākāpō Files II 14 | Biggest Kākāpō Breeding Season
02 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
DOC’s Kākāpō Recovery Programme says that the 2026 kākāpō breeding season is officially the biggest on record, and that all chicks have now ha...
Kākāpō Files II 13 | Kākāpō Birth Notices
23 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
DOC’s Kākāpō Recovery Programme is thrilled to announce the births of 101 kākāpō chicks, with a few more fertile eggs expected to hatch over t...
Kākāpō Files II 12 | Lots of Kākāpō Babies
09 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The number of kākāpō chicks has climbed to 54, with plenty more fertile eggs still to hatch on Whenua Hou and Pukenui/Anchor Island. Remote monitor...
Kākāpō Files II 11 | Kākāpō Baby Boom
23 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Fourteen kākāpō chicks have hatched in wild nests, where they are being cared for by mums and foster mums. More than a hundred viable fertile eggs ...
Kākāpō Files II 10 | The First Chick
16 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The first chick of the 2026 kākāpō breeding season has successfully hatched on Pukenui/Anchor Island. DOC’s Kākāpō Recovery Programme reports ...
Kākāpō Files II 09 | Nesting Time
09 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Almost 90% of adult female kākāpō of breeding age have mated so far this breeding season, and two thirds of those are nesting. Some birds have alre...
Kākāpō Files II 08 | Peak Breeding
02 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
More than three-quarters of female kākāpō of breeding age have mated so far, and the number of nests is growing rapidly. Kākāpō operations manag...
Kākāpō Files II 07 | Full Steam Ahead
26 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The 2026 kākāpō breeding season is all systems go: nearly half of the females of breeding age have mated and so far 15 females are nesting. Technic...
Kākāpō Files II 06 | Kākāpō Action Heating Up
19 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
There have been 24 kākāpō matings so far, and the number is increasing as mating action heats up on all three breeding islands. Deidre Vercoe, from...
Kākāpō Files II 05 | The First Nest
12 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Early bird Pearl has laid the first eggs of the 2026 kākāpō breeding season but Kākāpō Recovery Programme science advisor Andrew Digby tells Ali...
Kākāpō Files II 04 | Any Minute Now
05 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It’s the New Year and we’re in the early days of a big kākāpō breeding season. Daryl Eason from the Kākāpō Team tells Alison Ballance that E...
Kākāpō Files II 03 | Kākāpō Countdown
29 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It’s nearly the New Year and we’re counting down to the start of a big kākāpō breeding season. Island ranger Maddy Whittaker tells Alison Balla...
Kākāpō Files II 02 | Meet the Team
22 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It’s the summer solstice and we are waiting for kākāpō breeding to begin. Alison Ballance chats with island ranger Maddy Whittaker, who reports t...
Kākāpō Files II 01 | The Birds are Back
15 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Kākāpō Files returns for a second season, to follow everyone’s favourite parrot through what is predicted to be the biggest breeding season o...
Introducing: Kākāpō Files II
26 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In 2019 Alison Ballance followed the bumpy, rollercoaster ride that was the kākāpō breeding season. Now she returns, six years on, to do it all ove...
New Video: Antarctica in a Warming World
23 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In Antarctica in a Warming World researchers talk about the present impacts of climate change on the icy continent, and what they mean for our future....
Voices from Antarctica 08 | Under the ice
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Tiny plants that live on the underside of sea ice form an upside-down garden that feeds krill and is the base of the Antarctic food web.To see images ...
Voices from Antarctica 07 | What the ice is saying
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Researchers are using hot water to drill through the Ross ice shelf, to discover what has happened to Antarctic ice during previous periods of warm cl...
Voices from Antarctica 06 | Seal songs
29 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alison Ballance eavesdrops on the songs of the world's southern-most mammal, the Weddell seal, and finds out about sea ice.To see images and read more...
Voices from Antarctica 05 | Waiting for Emperors
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Emperor penguin researchers are waiting for tagged birds to return, and an elderly radar system sheds light on a very windy part of the atmosphere.To ...
Voices from Antarctica 04 | Best journey in the world
15 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alison Ballance meets a colony of Emperor penguins and their NIWA researchers, and finds out about making water on the frozen continent.To see images ...
Voices from Antarctica 03 | Flags to physics
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Keeping Scott Base warm and well-lit no matter the weather outside, and a physics experiment that eavesdrops on messages to submarines.To see images a...
Voices from Antarctica 02 | Scott Base
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alison Ballance has her first day at New Zealand's Antarctic station, Scott Base, and visits the historic Hillary's Hut.To see images and read more ab...
Voices from Antarctica 01 | Ice Flight
24 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alison Ballance dons her extreme cold weather clothing for a trip to Antarctica - but getting to the frozen continent can take time.To see images and ...
Introducing: Voices from Antarctica
23 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alison Ballance finds out what it takes to live in and do science in Antarctica, in a podcast series recorded on the frozen continent in November 2019...
Fight for the Wild 04 | What's in it for us?
17 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In the series finale, Hope, we get a glimpse of what a predator-free Aotearoa could look like, and look at the breakthrough technologies and innovatio...
Fight for the Wild 03 | Predator-Free 2050 & Māori
10 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Community-led projects are leading the charge to halt biodiversity decline, while researchers make break-throughs in their quest to remove predators a...
Fight for the Wild 02 | Remove and protect
03 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
New Zealander's have drawn a line in the sand, announcing they will rid the nation of rats, stoats and possums by 2050, but what will it take to get t...
Fight for the Wild 01 | Dealing with loss
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Loss looks at the devastating effect introduced mammals have had on New Zealand's unique wildlife. This episode was first published in May 2021.Watch ...
Introducing: Fight for the Wild
26 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Takes you into the wild heart of Aotearoa, documenting the desperate battle to protect it and exploring the notion of Predator Free 2050. This series ...
Voice of the Iceberg 04 | Endeavour
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Joseph Michael and his film-making companions come face-to-face with the heaving splendour of giant icebergs in the waters around the Antarctic Penins...
Voice of the Iceberg 03 | Adventure
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Encounters with blue ice and wildlife prove to be life-changing adventures, when photographer Joseph Michael and his companions venture into the creva...
Voice of the Iceberg 02 | Revelation
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The varied sounds and characters of icebergs begin to reveal themselves to a watching team of film-makers. A small iceberg, Yoko, that fizzes and crac...
Voice of the Iceberg 01 | Discovery
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Artist Joseph Michael and a team of eight film-makers head to Antarctica on the yacht Australis, to discover and record the sights and sounds of icebe...
Introducing: Voice of the Iceberg
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The next series to join the Wild Sounds feed is Voice of the Iceberg, first published in 2017. Artist Joseph Michael and his team record the character...
Voice of the Kākāpō 08 | Success
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The 2019 kākāpō chicks are becoming independent and birds sent to be scanned for aspergillosis are getting clean bills of health. This episode was ...
Voice of the Kākāpō 07 | Dark days
23 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A deadly fungal disease strikes the kākāpō population on Whenua Hou and the Kākāpō Recovery team calls on New Zealand wildlife vets to help. Thi...
Voice of the Kākāpō 06 | Kākāpō chicks
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The kākāpō eggs are hatching, and chicks are being hand-reared or returned to their mother's nest... but not every chick is thriving. This episode ...
Voice of the Kākāpō 05 | Kākāpō sperm takes to the air
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The tally of infertile eggs is climbing and the kākāpō team is using artificial insemination - and a drone - to try and counter the problem. This e...
Voice of the Kākāpō 04 | Promise
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Most of the female kākāpō have bred and the team is carrying precious fertile eggs to the 'egg room' for incubation. Meanwhile, on Anchor Island, t...
Voice of the Kākāpō 03 | Nest checks
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Kākāpō breeding is in full swing after an early start, and DOC's Deidre Vercoe and Andrew Digby are checking to see if eggs are fertile. This episo...
Voice of the Kākāpō 02 | Whenua Hou, kākāpō island
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The kākāpō team know all the signs are good for a big kākāpō breeding season - the question is exactly how big and when will it start? This epis...
Voice of the Kākāpō 01 | Kākāpō - night parrot
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The kākāpō is a giant flightless parrot whose fortunes are tied to the rimu tree and to a dedicated team of rangers from the Department of Conserva...
Introducing: Voice of the Kākāpō
10 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Claire Concannon introduces you to the next series from Wild Sounds. Hosted by Alison Ballance, hear the adventure through the bumpy bumper 2019 breed...
Voice of Tangaroa 08 | Turning the tide
04 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Kate Evans visits a passionate team as they carpet a remote volcanic island in Tonga with poisoned bait, hoping to eradicate rats. What does it take t...
Voice of Tangaroa 07 | Summer 34
28 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Journalist Rebekah White meets two people who have been counting albatrosses on remote islands in the subantarctic for more than three decades. Their ...
Voice of Tangaroa 06 | Taking on water
21 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
New Zealand once led the world in marine protection. Now it looks like we will fail to meet our international promise to protect 30 percent of our oce...
Voice of Tangaroa 05 | A tale of two islands
14 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The Bounty Islands are tiny in terms of area - just some bits of granite jutting out of the ocean. But they are huge in terms of seabirds. James Frank...
Voice of Tangaroa 04 | The stuff of life
07 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What roles do our ocean ecosystems play in capturing carbon? Kate Evans speaks to iwi Māori working to improve the health of an estuary in the Bay of...
Voice of Tangaroa 03 | Fish out of water
30 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
People and livestock gobble so much fish that the seas soon won't keep up. Is the answer to grow fish on land? Kate Evans meets scientists figuring ou...
Voice of Tangaroa 02 | Kina-nomics
23 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Kina numbers are exploding on some of our reefs, decimating seaweed habitats. Could this problem be solved by eating them? Kate Evans investigates the...
Voice of Tangaroa 01 | The undersea orchetra
16 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Crackle, pop, woof, crunch, click. In the ocean, an undersea orchestra is in full swing. Journalist Kate Evans discovers who's playing in it and why, ...
Introducing: Voice of Tangaroa
15 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
A collaboration between Our Changing World and New Zealand Geographic, the Voice of Tangaroa series explores the state of our oceans, and the extraord...
Bonus: RNZ climate correspondent Eloise Gibson
15 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Claire Concannon spoke to RNZ's climate correspondent Eloise Gibson for the last episode of the Voice of the Sea Ice series. Listen to the full interv...
Voice of the Sea Ice 06 | Where to?
09 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Human-induced climate change is impacting Earth’s global systems, including ice melt in Antarctica. What is the world doing to combat it? Signed in ...
Voice of the Sea Ice 05 | Changing times
02 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In February 2025, the world hit a new low for global sea ice extent. Arctic sea ice has been declining for several decades now, but Antarctic sea ice ...
Voice of the Sea Ice 04 | More life!
26 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Penguins that return to the ice in the middle of winter to lay their eggs. Seals that use cracks in the ice to keep their pups safe. And fish that hav...
Voice of the Sea Ice 03 | Life!
19 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What’s it like to live and work on the frozen ocean? A team of researchers are camping out on the sea ice to investigate the small critters that liv...
Voice of the Sea Ice 02 | Antarctica's heartbeat
12 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Step out on the sea ice just outside New Zealand’s Scott Base with researchers studying the physics of its annual cycle. Each year a massive patch o...
Voice of the Sea Ice 01 | A land of ice and ambition
05 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to Antarctica - a land of ice, extremes, and ambition. From historic expeditions to modern day science projects, Antarctic exploration is a un...
Introducing: Voice of the Sea Ice
20 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Each winter the sea ice that forms around Antarctica effectively doubles the size of this massive continent. It’s one of the biggest annual global c...