This week former student Daryl Eason (1980 to 1984) was inducted into the Central Hawke’s Bay College Hall of Honour.  For over 25 years Daryl has played a major role in saving from extinction the endemic flightless kākāpō, which is ranked nationally as critically endangered. The kākāpō is the largest of all parrots and used to be found all over New Zealand.  Due to ecological changes the loss of habitat and introduced predators, the number of kākāpō was only 51 in 1995 it now stands at 206. Daryl’s contribution to the recovery of the kākāpō has been significant and he has been recognised nationally for his work, most notably in the book “Kākāpō – Rescued from the Brink of Extinction”. His outstanding work has also been recognised by his peers worldwide who work in the threatened species recovery field, where he is considered a “conservation champion”.

We are proud that one of our former students has followed his passion and contributed so tirelessly towards the conservation of one of our rarest national birds. Daryl says “Management of kākāpō has come with huge challenges, but the work, which involves a lot of science and technical management is ever-changing, exciting, and immensely satisfying. Particularly seeing hand-reared birds, many of which were critically ill, returned to the wild, adapting behaviourally and socially and going on to raise their own chicks.”

Article added: Tuesday 02 March 2021