The black-billed gull is only found in this country - it looks like a red-billed gull except for the difference in bill colour - as you'd expect. Why oh why has some sicko in southland gone out and shot, and smacked to death over 100 of them? There is no rational reason - but these people or this person is still out there and whilst a human - their partner or child - don't look like Black-billed gulls - who can say that they won't be next.
From Stuff
More than 100 of the rarest gulls in the world were massacred as they nested near Wreys Bush in Southland.
Department of Conservation Murihiku biodiversity ranger Ros Cole said more than 100 adult black-billed gulls were found dead beside the Aparima River at Wreys Bush on November 24.
Most of the birds died from bullet wounds, but others had broken bones and some chicks were found starving to death beside their dead parents, she said.
Shotgun cartridges were found beside some nests and an autopsy confirmed shotgun pellets were the most likely cause of death, Ms Cole said. "They have gone into the colony and gone mad. It's pretty sad that people want to shoot these birds and leave the chicks to starve," she said.
DOC Murihiku compliance and law enforcement ranger Kelwyn Osborn said the shooting was the third involving the endangered native gull in two months.
The THIRD!!! This is getting sicker and sicker - who is doing this and can you guarantee they won't do the same thing to their family or anyone else.
I oppose sending our endemic fauna overseas to zoos and other institutions. News that 5 kiwi have been sent overseas is sad. These birds, our birds, whakapapa here and for them to be bought up and live in a zoo overseas shows what we really think of these birds - that they are a commodity, a thing to be used to build prestige or even up the wildlife that come here to our zoos.
From NZH
"American researchers studying ways to breed kiwi in captivity are about to receive their first delivery of the shy brown birds for almost 20 years.
Five North Island brown kiwi were packed into crates and put on a plane to Los Angeles yesterday evening, destined for new homes at San Diego Wild Animal Park, the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Virginia and Frankfurt Zoo in Germany.
The two pairs and a female will join an expat population of about 39 kiwi - 23 living in Europe and 16 in America.
This idea that they can help our breeding program from overseas is a red herring in my view. They want to learn how to breed in captivity to increase the numbers of birds - in zoos, in captivity.
"The Smithsonian got its first pair of kiwi in 1968 as a gift to the US Government from then New Zealand Prime Minister Keith Holyoake. They produced the first chick born outside of New Zealand in 1975, a male which is still alive and entertaining visitors at the zoo.
A spokeswoman for Auckland Zoo, which hatched and reared the birds being exported this week, said they were needed overseas to inject some genetic diversity into the small populations.
To me it is exploitation without consideration for the individual birds or the species. I just don't trust their motives or reasons.
