Page 79 - BBC Wildlife - August 2017 UK

KAKAPO

RICHARD HENRY’S LEGACY

This family tree shows descendants of a kakapo called
Richard Henry, found in Fiordland National Park in 1975.

of the birds’ DNA, rather like a genetic dating website for Clockwise from RICHARD HENRY
kakapo. “Sequencing the genomes of all living kakapo top left: rangers Died 2010
handle kakapo
could give us so much more insight into the problems
eggs to check
that we have,” says Digby. their development;
Genomic analyses are increasingly finding their way into a camera in the
the world of conservation, where they are being used to burrow monitors
the chicks 24
help save animal and plant life alike. In addition, enormous
hours a day;
‘genome mapping’ projects exist that seek to decode and
breeding kakapos GULLIVER SINBAD KUIA
catalogue the genomes of thousands of different life forms. can access food Hatched Hatched Hatched
at supplementary 1998 1998 1998
DECIPHERING DATA feeders if they
need to gain
In 2015, Robertson submitted the DNA of a kakapo
weight; a chick
called Jane to one of these genome-mapping projects, is weighed.
the B10K, which seeks to decipher the genomes of
10,000 bird species. It was decoded by a geneticist from
Duke University in North Carolina, Jason Howard, who MARIAN GERTRUDE ADELAIDE HENRY
became intrigued by the kakapo after stumbling across Hatched Hatched Hatched Hatched
a book about the bird in his local library. “Once you’ve 2016 2016 2016 2016
sequenced one genome, it is then comparatively easy to
do the same for other members of the same species,”
August 2017 BBC Wildlife 79