Take a break from watching polls and start watching birds with The Great Kererū Count. Forest & Bird have teamed up with local company Thundermaps to create an easy way for all of us to track these magnificent yet near-threatened native pigeons, using the Thundermaps smartphone apps or web application.

The great kereru count

Kererū are vital to the health of our forests, because they’re big enough to swallow and spread the seeds of tawa, miro, and other trees. They’re relatively common around the Western hills of Wellington, and in the Hutt Valley, but it would be great to see them spreading east across the city. Starting on Monday, for a two week period you’ll be able to contribute to our understanding of their distribution and habits by adding your observations and photos.