Plant microfossil analysis of coprolites of the critically endangered kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) parrot from New Zealand

We present here the results of the analysis of pollen, spores, starch and other microscopic plant material in 52 coprolites of the critically endangered kakapo (Strigops habroptilus), a New Zealand endemic parrot. The six sampling sites (caves, rock overhangs) are in widely separate geographic regions in the South Island, across an altitudinal range encompassing lowland, montane and sub-alpine environments. Radiometric testing gives average ages of discrete coprolite groups ranging from modem to 2514 +/- 43 C-14 yr BP (Wk-19164). A wide variety of plant taxa is identified in the coprolites, comprising cones, flowers, leaves and fronds of similar to 30 podocarps, dicotyledonous trees, shrubs and lianas, grasses, ferns, lycopods, mosses and liverworts. This supports previous observations that kakapo are versatile feeders, using a broad spectrum of foods that may only be available for short periods and intermittent years. Many of the food taxa we identify are consistent with the studies of modem kakapo, diet. We also identify several new foods, potentially of value in developing food supplements to increase breeding frequency of the current kakapo population. The most commonly identified plant parts in coprolites were fern fronds (monoletes, Hymenophyllum, Cyathea smithii), followed by podocarp cones and leaves. Lack of starch in the coprolites suggests that the lycopod and fern rhizomes reported in modem kakapo diet were not commonly eaten. The data provide initial botanical evidence of diet from coprolites of an extant bird. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.