New Zealand parrot

No consensus existed regarding the taxonomy of Psittaciformes until recently. The placement of the Strigopoidea species has been variable in the past. The family belongs to its own superfamily Strigopoidea. This superfamily is one of three superfamilies in the order Psittaciformes; the other two families are Cacatuoidea (cockatoos) and Psittacoidea (true parrots). While some taxonomists include three genera (Nestor, Nelepsittacus, and Strigops) in the family Strigopidae, others place Nestor and Nelepsittacus in the Nestoridae and retain only Strigops in the Strigopidae. Traditionally, the species of the family Strigopoidea were placed in the superfamily Psittacoidea, but several studies confirmed the unique placement of this group at the base of the parrot tree. ==Phylogeography==

An unproven hypothesis for the phylogeography of this group has been proposed, providing an example of various speciation mechanisms at work. In this scenario, ancestors of this group became isolated from the remaining parrots when New Zealand broke away from Gondwana about 82 million years ago, resulting in a physical separation of the two groups. ==Species==

Very little is known about the Chatham kākā. The genus Nelepsittacus consists of three described and one undescribed species recovered from early Miocene deposits in Otago. The genus Heracles consists of a giant species also described from the early Miocene of Otago. ==Common names==

of the Māori language, the long versions of the vowels a and o are written with macrons; i.e., ā and ō. Note that a long ā in Maori should be pronounced like the a in English "father". The etymology of kea in Māori is less clear; it might be onomatopoeic of its kee-aah call. ==Ecology==

, like these in the Southern Alps. The highest mountain in New Zealand, Aoraki / Mount Cook, is in the background. The isolated location of New Zealand has made it difficult for mammals to reach the island. This is reflected in the absence of land mammals other than bats. The main predators were birds: harriers, falcons, owls, and the massive, extinct Haast's eagle. Many of the adaptations found in the avifauna reflect the unique context in which they evolved. This unique balance was disrupted with the arrival of the Polynesians, who introduced the Polynesian rat and the kurī (Polynesian dog) to the island. Later, Europeans introduced many more species, including large herbivores and mammalian predators. The three extant species of this family occupy rather different ecological niches, a result of the phylogeographical dynamics of this family. The kākāpō is a flightless, nocturnal species, well camouflaged to avoid the large diurnal birds of prey on the island, while the local owls are too small to prey on the kākāpō at night. The kākāpō is the only flightless bird in the world to use a lek-breeding system. Usually, they breed only every 3–5 years when certain podocarp trees like rimu (Dacrydium cupressinum) mast abundantly. The kea is well adapted to life at high altitudes, and they are regularly observed in the snow at ski resorts. As trees are absent in the alpine zone, they breed in hollows in the ground instead of in tree hollows like most parrot species. ==Relationship with humans==

Importance to the Māori The parrots were important to the Māori in various ways. They hunted them for food, kept them as pets, and used their feathers in weaving such items as their kahu huruhuru (feather cloak). Feathers were also used to decorate the head of the taiaha, a Māori weapon, but were removed prior to battle. The skins of the kākāpō with the feathers attached were used to make cloaks (kākahu) and dress capes (kahu kākāpō), especially for the wives and daughters of chiefs. Status Of the five species, the Norfolk kākā and only between seven and 20 skins survive. The Chatham kākā became extinct between 1500 and 1650 in pre-European times, after Polynesians arrived at the island, and is only known from subfossil bones. and introduced the kurī (dog) and kiore (Polynesian rat) to the islands. This was disastrous for the native fauna, because mammalian predators can locate prey by scent, and the native fauna had no defence against them. Conservation Recovery programs for the kākāpō and the kākā have been established, while the kea is also closely monitored. The living kākāpō are all in a breeding and conservation program. Each one has been individually named. ==See also==