Special NZ birds of prey

Meet Whisper the Morepork
Join Andrew and Ineke Smets inside the aviary of Whisper the morepork and hear her story of survival.
1. How old is Whisper?
Whisper is about 4 years old .
2. Whisper has been hand-raised and is quite friendly. What is the term Ineke uses to describe this type of bird?
Ineke described Whisper as half human half morepork.
3. How do Whisper’s soft, rounded feathers help her?
The soft feathers help her to fly silently in the bush so she can catch her prey.

Karearea the New Zealand Falcon
Debbie Stewart introduces you to Shaheena, a beautiful falcon with a sharp bite!
1. How can you tell that Shaheena is still a young bird?
She still has blue feathers around her beak and eyelids .
2. What is special about a falcon’s beak?
They have special notches around there beak that are called teeth to make it like a nut cracker.
3. How do the baffles in its nostrils help?
It stops the wind from going in the nostrils and making the Falcon light headed.

Meet Tahi the Special Barn Owl
You are back at the aviary. Come and meet New Zealand’s only captive barn owl.
1. Where did Tahi’s parents come from?
They were living in Australia till they were blown to New Zealand.
2. How did Tahi hurt his wing?
They think he was learning to fly when he hit himself on a fence.
3. What do barn owls like to eat?
They eat rats and mice.