Robin Hood

Blogger: Campaign Manager for the kokako & co-leader of the Green Party, Russel Norman

Why vote for just a bird when you can have a new national park as well? That’s right. As a politician, I can promise you a new Giant Totara National Park to go along with your support for the hauntingly beautiful but endangered North Island kokako.  

Kokako, Photo: Simon Fordham

This crazy bird is the Robin Hood of our local fauna. Behind its bandit mask lies a heart of gold…and a song to leave all other birds looking a little out of key.

The last best stronghold of the kokako is in the Pureora Forest Park just west of Lake Taupo. Most of our lowland forest has now been destroyed along with the giant totara trees that once were everywhere.

Pureora is today in pieces, split up by one of the Crafar farms. These farms are up for sale so we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to buy the farm and join back up the Park. With a little planting, we can create a single national park to protect the kokako and the giant totara. This is my dream…and your vote would sure help.

So don’t vote for the pukeko — it’s the poster child for coal and we all know how bad coal is for climate change. And don’t vote for the tui either. How many times have I found a tui in my garden drunk and disorderly? The kahu (hawk) might look like a safe bet but, given the chance, he’d have sent our birds off to fight in Iraq.

That leaves only the Robin Hood of birds to support: Vote kokako and vote for a Giant Totara National Park.