Birds · Gruiformes · Rallidae
South Island Takahe
Porphyrio hochstetteri
It faces a very high risk of extinction in the wild in the near future. See full glossary
The largest living rail in the world. A flightless bird with a massive body and bluish-purple plumage with greenish sheen on the back, an enormous, heavy pink bill, pink legs and feet and white undertail coverts. It shows no sexual dimorphism.
Weight
2.3 kg – 2.7 kg
Size
50 cm – 63 cm
Lifespan
14 years
Diet
Herbivore
Feeds mainly on plants.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
In pairs
Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.
Sighting difficulty
Hard
Estimated population
440 individuals in October 2021, growing by 10% a year
Fun facts
- GeneralIt was given up as extinct for 50 years until it was rediscovered in a remote valley in 1948.
- conservaciónIt was thought extinct for over 50 years until a small group was rediscovered in 1948 in a remote mountain area of New Zealand.
- It was given up for extinct after the last known bird was taken in 1898, and was rediscovered fifty years later, in November 1948, by Geoffrey Orbell in an isolated valley of the Murchison Mountains.
- It is monogamous and shows no sexual dimorphism: males and females are indistinguishable to the eye.
- Its genome was sequenced in 2024 alongside that of the weka, and both showed the lowest heterozygosity of the New Zealand rails studied, a reflection of their small populations.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
- Habitat & environment
- Alpine tussock grassland and wetland
- Birth weight
- Precocial: born covered in down and leaves the nest within a few hours
- Size at birth
- Precocial: born covered in down and leaves the nest within a few hours
- Sexual maturity
- 2 years
- Gestation / incubation
- ~30 days of incubation
- Litter / clutch size
- 1-3 eggs per clutch
Sources consulted: IUCN Red List 2020; BirdLife DataZone; Departamento de Conservación de Nueva Zelanda (Takahē Recovery Programme); Animal Diversity Web; West et al. 2022, Animal Microbiome; Gaspar, Trewick y Gibb 2024, Ecology and Evolution; Meyer 1883
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapBest time: All year round in the Takahē Valley and on the islands where it has been translocated
Where to watch it
Parks and dive sites where this species has been documented.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with South Island Takahe — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
VulnerableWeka
Gallirallus australis
Yellow-eyed Penguin
Megadyptes antipodes
Black Swan
Cygnus atratus
EndangeredKea
Nestor notabilis
Australian Magpie
Cracticus tibicen
Great Pied Cormorant
Phalacrocorax varius
How to help
The south island takahe is classified as endangered. Organizations such as UICN, WWF y Wildlife Conservation Society work specifically on its conservation and that of its habitat; looking into their programs is a good starting point if you want to get involved.
It's documented in 3 real protected areas — part of why protecting these places matters for its conservation.
Keep exploring
Based on what we already know about south island takahe.
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