Parc de la rivière Bleue: a natural setting favorable to cagous, the national bird of Caledonia
Photo credits: Patrice Morin
The exact population of cagous in New Caledonia remains unknown, however in the Parc de la rivière Bleue, they have established themselves in numbers.
In 1984, in the south of New Caledonia, the park counted about sixty individuals, mainly in the valleys. For more than 30 years, numerous conservation plans have protected the cagou from their main predators, wild cats and dogs. The last census of cagous now estimates the park's population at 960 individuals.
Jean-Marc Mériot, ornithologist at the Parc de la rivière Bleue, explains: during the last census in 2019, we noticed that the cagous had dispersed and colonized the different forests that are found in the Blanche River valley. This is very positive, it proves that the population is dynamic, that the cagous reproduce, multiply and disperse around the park.
Jean-Marc Mériot has been observing cagous for 20 years. Throughout the census which takes place every five years, from July to December, the specialist spends around sixty days studying the songs and behavior of this rare species.
Each year, between June and November, the cagous are in breeding season. A key step because the female lays only one single egg per year. Jean-Marc Mériot describes: you can have a second replacement spawning if the first has failed, but a single spawning is not much, although the cagou lives long. It is essential to the survival and development of the species.
Although the population continues to grow in the Blue River Provincial Park, wild cagous are still endangered. The specialists are currently working on a five-year action plan in order to find out more about the genetic diversity of this endemic bird of New Caledonia.