Monal (Himalayan) breeders in NZ outside of Northland?

[Antipodean Coll]

Hi all,
Can anyone put me in touch with others with active breeding programs? Is Les still breeding, for example, too?
I am in Rotorua area.
Cheers
Craig

[Neil Fitzgerald]

Hi Craig,
Good luck. As you have probably worked out, we generally focus on wild birds here. But, before anyone else jumps on it, I am allowing this one because it is very specific, the answer is not immediately obvious (a web search found Wellington Zoo has/had at least one old bird a few years ago), and in the past we did have a member who kept this species.
Neil

[SomesBirder]

The private animal collection "Wilderness Woodend" in the South Island was trying to breed their monals, but I don't know whether they succeeded.

Hamilton Zoo might still have monals.

[Antipodean Coll]

Many thanks. No I didnt realize but had wondered. Very interesting threads. Was the breeder called Les? Is he no longer active, here or as a breeder or ...? A chap in Northland even is trying using vet and embryo-type interventions! I wld so like to contact the Les if he ia who I suspect and therefore I think was a pioneer breeder of Monals, am wondering if he was not even the original importer into NZ. Any help is much appreciated.

[ngocnhungplaza]

Hi Craig,
I know of a couple of small-scale breeders closer to the central North Island, but it's getting harder to find people actively working with Monals. Not sure about Les — I haven’t heard updates recently. You might want to check with local aviculture groups around Waikato or Taupo — they sometimes have leads that aren’t listed online. Best of luck with your search!