The kākāpō is a nocturnal, flightless parrot that is critically endangered and one of New Zealand's unique treasures

鸮鹦鹉是一种夜行、不能飞的鹦鹉，极度濒危的物种，也是新西兰特有的珍宝之一。

The kākāpō, also known as the owl parrot, is a large, forest-dwelling bird, with a pale owl-like face. Up to 64 cm in length, it has predominantly yellow-green feathers, forward-facing eyes, a large grey beak, large blue feet, and relatively short wings and tail. It is the world's only flightless parrot, and is also possibly one of the world's longest-living birds, with a reported lifespan of up to 100 years.

鸮鹦鹉，又名猫头鹰鹦鹉，是一种大型的森林栖息鸟类，面部发白且类似猫头鹰。这种鹦鹉体长可达64厘米，羽毛以黄绿色为主，眼睛朝前，喙大呈灰色、脚也大呈蓝色，翅膀和尾巴相对较短。它是世界上唯--种不会飞的鹦鹉，也可能是世界上寿命最长的鸟类之一，据报道其寿命可达100年。

Kākāpō are solitary birds and tend to occupy the same home range for many years. They forage on the ground and climb high into trees. They often leap from trees and flap their wings, but at best manage a controlled descent to the ground. They are entirely vegetarian, with their diet including the leaves, roots and bark of trees as well as bulbs, and fern fronds.

鸮鹦鹉是独居鸟类，往往多年活动范围不变。它们在地面觅食，也会爬到高高的树上。它们经常呼扇着翅膀从树上跳下，但最多只能做到有控制地落到地面。它们完全素食，饮食包括树叶、树根、树皮，还有植物球茎和蕨类植物的叶子。

Kākāpō breed in summer and autumn, but only in years when food is plentiful. Males play no part in incubation or chick-rearing – females alone incubate eggs and feed the chicks. The 1–4 eggs are laid in soil, which is repeatedly turned over before and during incubation. The female kākāpō has to spend long periods away from the nest searching for food, which leaves the unattended eggs and chicks particularly vulnerable to predators.

鸮鹦鹉在夏季和秋季繁殖，但只在食物充足的年份才会繁殖。雄鸟不参与孵化和育雏--雌鸟单独孵蛋，喂养雏鸟。她们会在土壤中产蛋，一般1-4枚，在孵蛋前后和孵卵期间，会反复翻动土壤。雌鸮鹦鹉不得不长时间离开巢穴去寻找食物，这时无“人“看管的蛋和雏鸟特别容易受到捕食者的攻击。

Before humans arrived, kākāpō were common throughout New Zealand's forests. However, this all changed with the arrival of the first Polynesian settlers about 700 years ago. For the early settlers, the flightless kākāpō was easy prey. They ate its meat and used its feathers to make soft cloaks. With them came the Polynesian dog and rat, which also preyed on kākāpō. By the time European colonisers arrived in the early 1800s, kākāpō had become confined to the central North Island and forested parts of the South Island. The fall in kākāpō numbers was accelerated by European colonisation. A great deal of habitat was lost through forest clearance, and introduced species such as deer depleted the remaining forests of food. Other predators such as cats, stoats and two more species of rat were also introduced. The kākāpō were in serious trouble.

在人类到来之前，鸮鹦鹉在新西兰的森林中很常见。然而，大约700年前，随着第一批波利尼西亚移民到后，这一切都变了。对于早期的定居者来说，这些不会飞的鸮鹦鹉是很容易捕获的猎物。他们吃鸮鹦鹉的肉，用它的羽毛制作柔软的斗篷。随着他们而来的还有波利尼西亚犬和老鼠，这些动物也会捕食鸮鹦鹉。到19世纪初，欧洲殖民者到来时，鸮鹦鹉已经被限制在北岛中部和南岛的森林地区。欧洲殖民加速了鸮鹦鹉的减少。大量的栖息地因森林砍伐而消失。并且，鹿等引入的物种，进一步耗尽了剩余森林中的食物，此外，猫、白鼬和另外两种老鼠等其他捕食者也被引入此地。(这一切使得)鸮鹦鹉陷入了严重的困境。

In 1894, the New Zealand government launched its first attempt to save the kākāpō. Conservationist Richard Henry led an effort to relocate several hundred of the birds to predator-free Resolution Island in Fiordland. Unfortunately, the island didn't remain predator free – stoats arrived within six years, eventually destroying the kākāpō population. By the mid-1900s, the kākāpō was practically a lost species. Only a few clung to life in the most isolated parts of New Zealand.

1894年，新西兰政府首次尝试拯救鸮鹦鹉。自然资源保护主义者理查德·亨利带头将数百只鸮鹦鹉转移到峡湾地区的无捕食者的决议岛。不幸的是，这个岛并没有一直保持无捕食者的状态白鼬在六年内抵达该岛，最终摧毁了岛上的鸮鹦鹉种群。到20世纪中期，鸮鹦鹉几乎成了一个消失的物种。只有少数几只在新西兰最偏远的地区勉强存活。[注释]“Resolutionlsland“位于新西兰西南部峡湾地区，是该地区最大的岛屿，与南岛大陆之间隔着塔马泰阿/昏湾(Tamatea/Dusky Sound)、特普瓦塔哈/碎海湾(Te Puaitaha/Breaksea Sound)和阿克隆海峡(Acheron Passage)。

From 1949 to 1973, the newly formed New Zealand Wildlife Service made over 60 expeditions to find kākāpō, focusing mainly on Fiordland. Six were caught, but there were no females amongst them and all but one died within a few months of captivity. In 1974, a new initiative was launched, and by 1977, 18 more kākāpō were found in Fiordland. However, there were still no females. In 1977, a large population of males was spotted in Rakiura – a large island free from stoats, ferrets and weasels. There were about 200 individuals, and in 1980 it was confirmed females were also present. These birds have been the foundation of all subsequent work in managing the species.

1949年至1973年，新成立的新西兰野生动物管理局进行了60多次探险考察以寻找鸮鹦鹉，主要集中在峡湾地区。他们捕获了6只，但其中没有雌鸟，并且，圈养几个月内，只有一直存活下来。1974年，一项新的倡议启动，到1977年，在峡湾地区又发现了18只鸮鹦鹉。然而，仍然没有雌鸟。1977年，在拉基乌拉岛(没有白鼬、雪貂和黄鼠狼，且岛占地大)，发现了大量的雄鸟，约有200只。1980年，证实该岛上也有雌鸟存在。这些鸟成了后续所有该物种管理工作的基础。[注释]“Rakiura”通常指的是新西兰的斯图尔特岛(Stewart lsland or Rakiura)“Rakiura”是毛利语名，通常被译成“发亮的天空”，可能是指斯图尔特岛著名的夕景或是南极光。

Unfortunately, predation by feral cats on Rakiura Island led to a rapid decline in kākāpō numbers. As a result, during 1980–97, the surviving population was evacuated to three island sanctuaries: Codfish Island, Maud Island and Little Barrier Island. However, breeding success was hard to achieve. Rats were found to be a major predator of kākāpō chicks and an insufficient number of chicks survived to offset adult mortality. By 1995, although at least 12 chicks had been produced on the islands, only three had survived. The kākāpō population had dropped to 51 birds. The critical situation prompted an urgent review of kākāpō management in New Zealand.

不幸的是，拉基乌拉岛上的野猫捕食鸮鹦鹉，导致鸮鹦鹉数量迅速下降。因此，在1980-1997年间，幸存的鸮鹦鹉被疏散到三个岛屿保护区:科德菲什岛、莫德岛和小巴里尔岛。然而，繁殖很难，因为老鼠被发现是鸮鹦鹉雏鸟的主要捕食者，存活的雏鸟数量不足以抵消成年鹦鹉的死亡率。到1995年，尽管这些岛上至少孵化出了12只雏鸟，但只有3只存活了下来。鸮鹦鹉的数量降至51只。这一危急情况促使新西兰紧急审查了管理鸮鹦鹉的相关工作。

In 1996, a new Recovery Plan was launched, together with a specialist advisory group called the Kākāpō Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee and a higher amount of funding. Renewed steps were taken to control predators on the three islands. Cats were eradicated from Little Barrier Island in 1980, and possums were eradicated from Codfish Island by 1986. However, the population did not start to increase until rats were removed from all three islands, and the birds were more intensively managed. This involved moving the birds between islands, supplementary feeding of adults and rescuing and hand-raising any failing chicks.

1996年，(新西兰)启动了一项新的“恢复计划”，同时，成立了一个名为鸮鹦鹉科学和技术咨询委员会的专业咨询小组，并投入了更多资金。他们采取了新的措施去控制这三个岛上的捕食者。1980年，小巴里尔岛上的猫被清除;到1986年，科德菲什岛上的负鼠被清除。然而，直到这三个岛上的老鼠都被清除，并且对这些鸟加强管理后，其种鹦鹉的数量才开始增加。这(对于鸮鹦鹉的管理工作)包括在岛屿之间转移鹦鹉、为成年鹦鹉提供补充饲料，以及救助和人工喂养发育不佳的雏鸟。[注释]在动物学领域，“possum'指的是负鼠或袋貂，是一种有袋类动物。

After the first five years of the Recovery Plan, the population was on target. By 2000, five new females had been produced, and the total population had grown to 62 birds. For the first time, there was cautious optimism for the future of kākāpō and by June 2020, a total of 210 birds was recorded.

在该计划开始实施的五年后，种群数量达到了预期目标。到2000年，新增了5只雌鸟，总数量增长到62只。人们第一次对鸮鹦鹉的未来开始持谨慎的乐观态度，到2020年6月，被记录到的鸮鹦鹉总数为210只。

Today, kākāpō management continues to be guided by the kākāpō Recovery Plan. Its key goals are: minimise the loss of genetic diversity in the kākāpō population, restore or maintain sufficient habitat to accommodate the expected increase in the kākāpō population, and ensure stakeholders continue to be fully engaged in the preservation of the species.

如今，鸮鹦鹉的管理仍在按照鸮鹦鹉恢复计划进行。其主要目标是:最大限度上减少鸮鹦鹉基因多样性的丢失，恢复或维持足够的栖息地来容纳已预期到的增长的鸮鹦鹉种群，并确保利益相关者持续全身齐心参与到该物种的保护工作中来。