Petrel chicks need fuel from the can | Northland News | Local News in Northland

The petrel chicks on Matakohe/Limestone Island are hungry, and there's only one thing they want - sardines.

Friends of Matakohe/Limestone Island and Whangarei District Council are fostering the chicks, imported from Hen Island, and are calling for donations of their favourite food.

Feeding the birds can be a challenge, but organisers of the fostering project have found the perfect solution on Whangarei supermarket shelves. Trial and error has shown that Brunswick oil-packed sardines contain enough fish in just the presentation the chicks like.

The aim of the fostering project is to create a resident population of petrels that will return to Matakohe/Limestone Island each year.

Forty chicks have been transported to the island this year. Of these, 14 have left, and project organisers hope they will return in four or five years time to breed.

If you'd like to help fill the tummies of the baby petrels, drop a tin of sardines into your local library or Whangarei District Council service centre.

Wanting to donate from out of the area? Contact the council on their website www.wdc.govt.nz