Kagu been voiced before this and dog control measures had been enacted in some areas in the 1980s. The kagu is listed as endangered (CITES I) and enjoys full protection in New Caledonia. It has been the subject of dedicated conservation efforts and is receptive to ex-situ conservation, breeding well in Nouméa Zoo. It is also prospering in Rivière Bleue Territorial Park, which has a pest-management programme and has been the site of releases into the wild of captive-bred birds. Recent research has shown that naturally occurring heavy metals in the soil may affect Kagu through their food supply. Kagu in
Kagu-tsuchi "Engishiki", a source which contains the myth, Izanami, in her death throes, bears the water god Mizuhame, instructing her to pacify Kagu-tsuchi if he should become violent. This story also contains references to traditional fire-fighting tools: gourds for carrying water and wet clay and water reeds for smothering fires. The name "Kagutsuchi" was originally a compound phrase, consisting of "kagu", an Old Japanese root verb meaning "to shine"; "tsu", the Old Japanese possessive particle; and "chi", an Old Japanese root meaning "force, power". Kagutsuchi was the patron deity of blacksmiths and ceramic workers. He is worshipped in several shrines, one