Last modified: 2023-04-02 by olivier touzeau
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![[Flag]](../images/n/nc_opt.gif)
Flag of OPT-NC - Image by Kazutaka Nishiura & António Martins, 18 July 2017
OPT-NC (website) is the government agency in charge of the postal service (including the release of postal stamps) and telecommunications in New Caledonia.
The agency was transferred to the government of New Caledonia by Decree No. 217, enacted on 2 May 2002 (text) as prescribed by the status of New Caledonia adopted on 19 March 1999.
Ivan Sache, 27 March 2006
The flag of the OPT is white with the agency's emblem, which is made of a kagu, the letters "OPT" in purple and "Nouvelle-Caledonie" written in white letters on a blue cartouche.
There are 197 species of birds recorded in New Caledonia, among which
23 are endemic, that is not found anywhere else in the wild. The
International Union for Nature Conservation (UICN) has listed 17
endemic forest birds of New Caledonia on the Red List of endangered
species, which includes 1,211 bird species worldwide. The most famous
of them and the emblematic bird of New Caledonia is the kagu (IUCN record).
The kagu (Rhynochetos jubatus) is the only member of the genus
Rhynochetos, which is the only member of the family Rhynochetidae. It
was trapped by the Melanesians, and later by the Europeans, for pet and
plume trade. The bird retreated to the interior of the island, where
its habitat was destroyed by nickel mining. The species is now
threatened by feral dogs and pigs; predation by cats and rats is not
documented. The kagu has full legal protection since 1977. It is
believed than less than 1,000 kagus still live in New Caledonia, mostly
in the South Province.
Most scientific publications on kagu were made by Dr. Gavin Hunt, now
with the Department of Psychology of the University of Auckland, New
Zeland and working on tool-making ability in New Caledonian crows. Dr.
Hunt worked on bird conservation in New Caledonia from 1991 to 1995 and
defended in 1997 in Massey University his Ph.D. thesis entitled, Ecology and conservation of the Kagu Rhynochetos jubatus of New
Caledonia (text)
Hunt wrote the chapter on kagu in two references books:
Hunt, G.R. (2002). Kagu. In Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia, Vol.
10: Birds. Gale Publishing Group, Farmington Hills, MI (text).
Hunt, G.R. (1996). Rhynochetidae (Kagu). Pp. 218-225 In (Eds. del Hoyo,
J., Elliott, A. and Sargatal, J.) Handbook of the Birds of the World,
Vol. 3. Hoatzin to Auks. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
Kazutaka Nishiura & Ivan Sache, 22 November 2009
![[Flag]](../images/n/nc_opt1.gif)
Former flag of OPT-NC - Image by Jaume Ollé & António Martins, 18 July 2017
The former flag of the OPT is yellow with the emblem of the OPT, which is a blue kagu with the letters "OPT "in yellow on its chest. "NOUVELLE-CALEDONIE" is written in blue below the bird.
Kazutaka Nishiura & Ivan Sache, 27 March 2006