There is something unmistakable about the rush of wings as a kererū lifts from a treetop - a flash of green and bronze. We all pause in our work and follow it across the sky.

These birds travel widely in search of seasonal fruit, feeding on miro, and tawa, and in doing so, they carry the seeds of the next forest with them. As the only bird in Aotearoa able to swallow and disperse large native fruits, kererū quietly shape the structure and future of our lowland forests.

They breed slowly and are vulnerable to predators, and they remain only where food is reliable and habitat is connected. There are kererū in the Wairau, but few and far between. When kererū live and raise chicks in a catchment year-round, it tells us that mature trees are standing, young forests are establishing, and the landscape is functioning again.

How you can help bring back kererū

Protect large, mature native trees, especially fruiting canopy species.

Plant eco-sourced natives that provide food across the seasons: plant list.

Support predator control at home or in your community.

Create corridors and stepping stones along fences, waterways and boundaries.

When kererū stay, the forest is finding its way back.