Kereru - New Zealand Pigeon - Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae
A kereru in my Little River garden feeding on the fruit of the cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus).
Unfortunately, in spite of the fact that the endemic pigeon loves this fruit (the birds are immune to the poisonous seed), this species of laurel is a serious introduced weed pest in New Zealand and I shall probably have to cut this tree down.
With no natural 'predators' to control its spread and a benign climate in New Zealand, the cherry laurel quickly spreads into dense thickets that shade out native species and create a single species environment that lack the diversity to support a thriving, multi-species ecosystem.
Kereru - New Zealand Pigeon - Hemiphaga novaeseelandiae
A kereru in my Little River garden feeding on the fruit of the cherry laurel (Prunus laurocerasus).
Unfortunately, in spite of the fact that the endemic pigeon loves this fruit (the birds are immune to the poisonous seed), this species of laurel is a serious introduced weed pest in New Zealand and I shall probably have to cut this tree down.
With no natural 'predators' to control its spread and a benign climate in New Zealand, the cherry laurel quickly spreads into dense thickets that shade out native species and create a single species environment that lack the diversity to support a thriving, multi-species ecosystem.