People in Otago are being asked to report rook sightings during spring, when the pest birds are most active.

The Otago Regional Council’s delivery lead biosecurity coastal Otago Simon Stevenson said while rooks have been reduced to very low levels, there are still some occasional sightings.

“We need the public’s help to target the last remaining birds, bearing in mind the potential always remains for the population to increase again. This enables us to better map nests and target these pests,” he said.

In recent years, ORC and Environment Southland have worked together to eradicate rooks, with community help, which has pushed populations down to very low numbers from many thousands of breeding pairs in the 1980s and 1990s. Southland is now rook free, while the birds continue to be sighted in Otago.

As rooks are intelligent and wary birds it is important that people don’t shoot at them but report them to council so effective control options can be undertaken, at no cost to the landowner.

Rooks are part of the crow family and are large birds with glossy, purplish-black feathers. They can be differentiated from other birds, such as magpies, by their larger size, their distinctive “kaah” call, slow wing flap and their wariness of people.

Rooks are attracted to recently cultivated paddocks and will feed on newly sown crops causing significant damage. Rooks were introduced to New Zealand between 1862-1873 to control insects, and, like many other introduced species, their population flourished and spread.

What you can do if you see a rook:

• Report any rook sightings ASAP to the Otago Regional Council - a new ‘report a pest’ form means your report is sent directly to the Biosecurity team
• Do not attempt to control any yourself, as unsuccessful attempts encourage dispersal and make rooks very wary and much more difficult to control.