The Cute Tiny Tomtits With Oversized Heads On A Ball Of Yellow Feathers

Presently, the main threat to populations on North and South Islands is from introduced mammalian predators, particularly ship rats. While many clutches and broods are taken by predators, adult females also suffer mortality because they alone incubate clutches and brood young, and their habit of nesting in shallow cavities means that they are not always able to escape once a predator arrives at the nest. To date this species has proven difficult to establish populations through translocation. Seven attempts have been made, some involving more than one transfer, with only two translocations (Mangere Island in the Chatham Islands, and Cape Kidnappers) resulting in new populations.