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Kōrero: Large forest birds

Takahē expedition

Image
Takahē expedition

In 1948, Invercargill doctor Geoffrey Orbell discovered South Island takahē living in a high valley in the Murchison Mountains in Fiordland. Takahē had not been seen since 1898, and they were presumed to be extinct. Orbell (right) returned to the site in January 1949 with Robert Falla (holding a takahē chick) and Jack Sorensen (the photographer). There were around 250 birds in this surviving population.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Department of Conservation

Reference: 10029452

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Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Gerard Hutching, Large forest birds – Takahē, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/photograph/10562/takahe-expedition (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Gerard Hutching, i tāngia i te 1 March 2009, updated 1 August 2023.