A young kea injured in a "really upsetting" shooting incident in Golden Bay has been euthanised due to its injuries.
Department of Conservation Tākaka Biodiversity Ranger Luke Easton said the endangered native parrot was collected from Motupipi, near Tākaka, reported in by a local on May 25.
The kea was one of two juveniles that had been hanging around together for the past month.
"It was in a really bad way – unable to fly at all, very stressed out, in a lot of pain and afraid. Its left wing was drooping and there was an open gunshot wound which looked a few days old. We knew there was serious damage and broken bones; it was really upsetting to see."
He said the bird was taken to the local vet and given an x-ray, which showed the bullet was still lodged inside. It was flown to Wellington on Golden Bay Air and transferred to Wildbase Hospital at Massey University.
Easton said sadly, further veterinary assessments determined the injuries were too severe for recovery and the decision was made to euthanise the bird.
Search for the culprit
"This is a tragic outcome and we want to know who has shot this bird. If you know anything, please call 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468) and quote CLE-11977," Easton said.
It was not the first time kea have been shot in Golden Bay, in the most recent incident a juvenile was found with a shattered legbone in February 2025, and underwent a lengthy recovery.
The Department of Conservation said the incidents highlighted a need for people to learn to live alongside the curious and protected species, which would sometimes stick their beak into things humans would rather they didn’t.
“The big one is to make sure there’s no food available to them – this includes pet food or unsecured compost and rubbish bins. One taste of food can change their behaviour long-term – instead of foraging in the wild like they should be, they may start hanging around people and scrounging for food," Easton said.
He urged people to make their properties "more boring for them" included removing any lead such as roofing nails, which kea like the taste of, but were poison.
"It's important to secure loose items such as shoes, bikes, toys and tools which kea may want to play with, especially during their most active times like dawn and dusk," he added.
"We’re lucky to see these charismatic birds popping up in coastal Golden Bay, and as their numbers rise, we’ll see them in backyards more often, so we need to learn to live alongside them."
“If you’re having trouble with kea at your property, get in touch with the Kea Conservation Trust or the local DOC office for some simple solutions to common problems we see around kea interactions.”
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