Contents

COVER : A few tufts of down still cling to the feathers of this newly fledged young kakapo. Despite concerted efforts to improve the lot of this perilously endangered species, between 1981 and 1997 only a single female was added to the small and aging population. Several more females have since been born, and there is hope that the present propitious season may yield a dozen or more new girls.
CONTENTS - Features :
KAKAPO : BIRD ON THE BRINK [The once abundant kakapo - a bird both endearing and eccentric - has been saved from extinction in the last 25 years only by a series of heroic translocations from island to island while safe refuges were prepared and more of its idiosyncratic biology unravelled];
BLAKE’S LAST VOYAGE [After a successful career in competitive yachting, Sir Peter Blake had adopted a new identity as the head of Blakeexpeditions, promoting a message of concern for the health of the earth’s water resources. Mark Scott was on board Blake’s yacht when bullets fired by Amazonian pirates ended the skipper’s life];
RAKIURA : THE THIRD ISLAND [Stewart Island, or Rakioura, has more rimu trees than blades of grass, 100 kiwi for every resident and far more tracks than roads. It is about to become the country’s 14th national park, but some of the locals worry about what the new designation may presage for the small island community];
BEACHCOMBERS AND CASTAWAYS [some places get under your skin, and for Carl Walrond the west coast of Stewart Island is one - a wilderness on the edge of the ocean and a beachcomber’s paradise];
CONTENTS - Departments :
GEONEWS [stinging jellyfish; frozen wastes; historic hikoi]; WEATHER [what blows in from across the Tasman]; BOOKS [The Eternal Frontier]; COMING UP [What’s in store];