The kea's notorious urge to explore and manipulate makes this bird both a pest for residents and an attraction for tourists. Called "the clown of the mountains", it will investigate backpacks, boots, skis, snowboards, and even cars (most commonly the rubber areas e.g. window frames), often causing damage or flying off with smaller items. Kea have been kept as pets before being protected, but rarely, since they were difficult to capture and destructive when in captivity.
They are often described as "cheeky". A kea has even been reported to have made off with a tourist's passport while he was visiting Fiordland National Park.
The kea featured on the reverse side of the New Zealand $10 note between 1967 and 1992, when it was replaced with the whio.
Now uncommon, the kea was once killed for bounty due to concerns by the sheep-farming community that it attacked livestock, especially sheep. In 1986, it received full protection under the Wildlife Act.
The population was estimated at between 1,000 and 5,000 individuals in 1986, contrasting with another estimate of 15,000 birds in 1992.
clusterlove on July 16th, 2019 at 16:46 UTC »
Found in New Zealand. Very intelligent and love ruining the rubber lining on car doors.
Sumit316 on July 16th, 2019 at 17:39 UTC »
This bird has some history.
Blackintosh on July 16th, 2019 at 18:01 UTC »
An incredible photo from a few months ago posted on Reddit
One of the best pictures I've ever seen tbh.