The Kea is the only alpine parrot in the world and is a regular star of the Milford Road. Park by the Homer Tunnel on the last leg of the journey into Milford Sound and you may be greeted by a circus of Kea.
About 48 cm (19 in) long, it is mostly olive-green with a brilliant orange under its wings and has a large, narrow, curved, grey-brown upper beak.
The kea is renowned for its intelligent and inquisitive nature. Kea nest on the ground, and monitoring indicates up to 60% of nests can be attacked by predators during breeding. The Kea is at risk from a predator plague caused by high levels of seed production ('beech mast') in 2014.
After watching the antics of this friendly parrot, it comes as no surprise to hear that a group of Kea is referred to as a circus!
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